The Golden Age of the Marauders
by InventorOfFirebolt
Summary: Short drabbles about life at Hogwarts. Pillow fights, clueless boys, and rebellious nights on the grounds. Anyone new reading this, I suggest you skip to the very last chapter and read backwards, my writing has  hopefully  improved since my earlier ones.
1. How Dare You!

"James!" I yelled up the stairs.

"Yeah?" he yelled back, not bothering to sugar-coat everything he says to me anymore, since we're living in the same tower. If he did, that'd be a right old pain in the you-know-what.

"We have patrol!"

"Oh. Right. One second!"

I sighed. As Head Boy, he ought to know at least what time patrols are. But no. I have to remind him every day to come down. _Well, at least he's fast_, I thought to myself as James bounded down, pinning his badge on hurriedly. I rolled my eyes.

"If you can remember, for _one_ day, when patrol is, I'll give you five Galleons," I said, heading to the portrait hole.

"Slips my mind," he replied.

"It can't possibly slip your mind every day! It's January!"

He shrugged again. "What can I say? I'm a busy man."

"Busy, my arse," I snorted.

"Fine. You're on." He crossed his arms as we stepped into an empty corridor.

"What?" I asked.

"The bet. If I can remember what time patrols are, then you owe me five Galleons."

"What? I was joking!"

"Too bad," he grinned. I punched his arm.

"Well then, I make it for a week," I challenged as we ambled along at a nice pace.

"Fine," he shot back. We continued patrolling in silence until we came upon a broom closet whose door was slightly ajar. A certainfamiliar broom closet, might I add, with certain familiar—and unpleasant—sounds floating out of it. James gestured to the closet and raised his eyebrows. I sighed to confirm.

"Want me to do it?" he whispered. I shook my head.

"I've got this," I whispered back. Then, without further ado, I clenched my teeth and yanked open the door.

"What did I tell you two about snogging in your own dormitories?" I demanded, facing a shirtless Sirius who was hiding a blonde girl behind his back. I tried not to look down as he grinned at me without a trace of shame.

"Hey Lily, did I ever tell you that you're like a sister to me?"

"Nice try, Black. Marlene, stop hiding, we've seen it all anyway." I directed that last part at my best friend. She didn't respond. "Mars?"

James came up behind me, shaking his head at _his_ best friend. "Oh Padfoot," he said. Sirius grinned at him too, just as unabashed.

"Next time, at least pick a different closet," I sighed. This was Sirius's rather infamous snogging closet. In total, I've walked in on him at least ten times this year, and more than I can count when patrolling as a prefect in fifth and sixth year. And all of them were _right here_. I feel sorry for the brooms and buckets inside.

"Aw, c'mon Lils," he whined. "This closet holds memories!"

"I don't want to know."

He smirked. "Oh, poor Evans. Don't have anybody to snog? Jamie boy right here is a good candidate."

I glared at him, my patience gone.

"Sirius Black. If you don't get out in the next ten seconds I will hex your balls off," I threatened. Sirius gulped and sneaked a glance at his family treasures then looked at me again. I smiled pleasantly while James stood by, awkwardly watching.

"Fine," he sighed. "Give us a bit of privacy first."

"Yeah, yeah," I grumbled. "Make it fast though—" I broke off with a gasp. For peeking out from under Sirius's arm was a pair of eyes. Not the playful blue eyes of Marlene McKinnon, but an unfamiliar murky pair of grayish-greenish eyes that I had never seen before. "Wait a second," I said slowly. "That's not Marlene, is it?"

He gulped again, shoving the girl's head behind his arm. "Er—it's not?"

"Sirius _Black_," I growled, pulling out my wand. "How _dare_ you."

He looked terrified, as he most definitely should. Cheating on my best friend! I'll give him terrified!

"Lily, it's not like that," he stammered, beads of sweat shining on his forehead.

"Oh no, Black. Don't even try. You don't deserve her anyway."

"Lily, please!" he begged. "Just let me explain!"

"What's there to explain anyway?" I cried. "I saw it with my own two eyes! And so did James," I added.

"You're dead, mate," James added helpfully. Sirius cursed.

"You, put on your clothes and go back to your dorm," I told the frightened girl. If I knew Sirius—and unfortunately I knew him quite well—then this girl was completely innocent. It was all _his_ fault. "And you," I growled. "You're coming with me."

"Oh goody," he muttered.


	2. The Curse

"It's a curse, I tell you!" James moaned, looking back from Lily to Sirius.

"What is?" Sirius asked, not looking up.

"A curse that all Potter males have," James moaned again.

"Hmm, well, narrow it down for me, Prongs. Is it that all Potter males wear unsightly glasses that mar their unsightly faces, or messy hair that would never look at good as mine or that unattractive scrawny build—" he caught sight of his best friend's expression. "I'm joking," He added hastily.

"You better be," James scowled.

"So what really is the curse? I still say scrawny," Sirius added as an afterthought.

"Why do they always to have red hair?" James frowned.

"Your hair is black, Prongs," Sirius informed him.

"I know that!" James scowled again. "Do I look stupid?"

"Yes," Sirius answered truthfully.

James ignored him. "And why does she have to be so pretty?"

Sirius was still confused. "Who are you talking about, mate?"

"Lily Evans," James replied, a dreamy looking overcoming him.

"Who?" Sirius frowned. In all his three years at Hogwarts, he had never really seen or heard of a Lily Evans before. Of course, maybe that's because he didn't date her. And majority of the time, he didn't ask for their names when they snogged, either.

"That one, over there," James pointed where a group of overall very attractive girls sat by the lake.

"Which one? The one with the nice butt or the blonde one?" Sirius squinted. "Actually, the blonde's got a pretty nice butt too."

"The red-haired, green-eyed one," James said, sighing.

"Ohh, that one!" Sirius' face cleared. "I think I've snogged her once."

James instantly became alert. "What? When?" He demanded, turning to his best friend.

"Dunno, probably last year or something," Sirius shrugged, losing track of the all the girls that he had either snogged or dated.

James looked deflated. "How come she didn't snog me?"

"You said it yourself, mate," Sirius grinned. "It's the Potter curse."


	3. Truth or Dare?

Lily was studying in the Gryffindor common room, which for once was serene and quiet. The library, in contrast, was in chaos because some idiot Hufflepuff made the mistake of carrying chocolate into the library. _I could use this level of peace more often_, Lily thought to herself and she flipped through her notes. But she didn't get far before abruptly, like being doused with cold water, her peace was broken.

"Hey Lily." James Potter dropped into the empty chair across from her, grinning. She glared back.

"What do you want, Potter?"

"Wanna play a game?"

"No, I don't. Leave me alone."

"Come on, Lils, please?"

"First of all, don't call me Lils. Second of all, I'm studying."

"What should I call you then? Can I call you 'love'?"

"No. Please, just shut up and go away."

"I won't till you agree to play the game with me, love."

"Don't call me 'love'!"

"All right, darling."

Lily ground her teeth.

"Glad to know I make you so happy, eh?"

"You were serious when you said you won't go until I play the game, weren't you?"

"That's right, sweetie."

"I hate you. Make it fast."

"Okay. Truth or dare?"

"That's a Muggle game."

"I know that. Truth or dare?"

"...dare."

"I dare you to say that you love me."

"No."

"C'mon Lily, it's a dare!"

"And what proof do I have that believe that you're not going to yell it for the entire school to hear after I say that?"

"I won't, I promise. Trust me,"

"I _don't_ trust you,"

"Well, now's the time to start doing it."

"Potter, you are absolutely insufferable."

"Nope, that's Sirius."

"I _hate_ you."

"No, you love me."

"Shut up and go die in a hole, please."

"Not before we get married and have three lovely kids."

"We are not going to have children together, and I'd rather eat bubotuber pus before I marry you."

"Just admit that you love me already,"

"I _don't!_"

"But I love you!"

"Good for you, now get the hell out of my sight."

"You still haven't done the dare yet, Lily."

"I demand a different dare, then."

"Fine. I dare you to kiss me,"

"No. Bloody. Way."

"Why? Are you scared?"

"No!"

"Then prove it."

"I don't _want_ to kiss you, Potter!"

"You're just saying that."

"James Potter, you're the _stupidest_ bigheaded—"

"—arrogant toerag that you've had the horrible luck to ever meet. But you love me for—"

What James thought Lily loved him for, the world may never know. His sentence was cut off as Lily whipped out her wand and—

"ARGH!" James screamed, the seat of his pants blazing. He ran around the common room with his bum on fire, hollering with pain. "DAMMIT, LILY!"

Lily allowed herself a small smirk. "That'll teach him to mess with me."


	4. Damn those hormones!

"YES!" James exclaimed. "N.E.W.T.'s are done!"

All the Marauders cheered. After three days of nonstop testing, it was finally over. But Lily was feeling far from happy. These results determined the outcome of her entire life! What if she messed up on a simple Runes translation? Or misread a problem in Transfiguration? Or labeled a moon incorrectly in Astronomy? She groaned and dropped her head into her hands, lamenting the twelve T's that she was surely going to receive.

"Lily?" Alice asked hesitantly. Lily mumbled something in response.

"Lils, are you all right?" Marlene frowned concernedly. "Do you need anything?"

"I've failed everything!" Lily blurted out, shocking everyone. Usually she was the first to recover from the nervousness of exams.

"No you haven't, Lily," Dorcas soothed, rubbing her back gently. Lily shook her head, her green eyes wild.

"Yes I have! I was always doomed to fail Runes and Arithmetic, Defense Against the Dark Arts bombed, Remus is far better than me at Astronomy, and Care of Magical Creatures is no good at all. Even James is better at Transfiguration." Lily sniffed, tears falling. James looked outraged.

"Hey!" he exclaimed. Remus shot him a look, clearly conveying _this isn't the best time, Prongs._ James immediately closed his mouth and hugged Lily instead.

"Love, you're the most brilliant witch I've ever seen. You did not fail anything," He told her firmly but Lily was still shaking and moaning.

"—and Divination was hell from the start, Potions was a disaster, I'm terrible at History of Magic and at least I'll get a D instead of a T in Charms."

Alice, Marlene, Dorcas, and Mary all sighed. They knew this was coming. Lily was as calm as can be a few days before the N.E.W.T's and that usually led to problems right after it.

"Lils." Marlene gently detached Lily from James' arms. "Lils, you need Madam Pomfrey. She'll give you something for nerves."

"NO!" Lily shrieked, causing everyone to jump. "I DON'T NEED MADAM POMFREY!"

"What do you need then, honey?" Alice peered worriedly at her best friend.

Lily broke into full, body-racking sobs now. "I don't know, I don't know, I don't know! All I know is that I've failed everything!" Sitting down on the lawn, she rocked back and forth like a small child after a nightmare. Sirius looked scared, like he wasn't sure how to deal with this, Remus got some water for Lily, and Peter just stood there. As one, all the girls turned to face James, who looked helplessly at them.

_Oh, bloody hell._ _What am I supposed to do?_ He grimaced at them.

_Comfort her, you great, useless prat!_ Dorcas glared.

_James, you've always said loved her. Now's time to prove it_, Mary's brown eyes said.

_ Well? What are you waiting for?_ Marlene silently yelled at him.

James sat down next to Lily and wrapped his arms around her small, fragile frame. She hissed malevolently.

"James—arse—Potter," She screeched. "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!"

James gaped. Lily didn't stop there.

"STOP BEING SO NICE! I DON'T NEED YOUR NICENESS!"

James didn't let go. Lily, looking rather frightening, started punching and clawing at him, hair flying and eyes glaring.

"Lily—stop—gerroff me—" James tried to push her off but that deemed to be unnecessary.

Abruptly, she turned her head and buried her face into his shoulder, soaking his robes.

"I've failed everything," she wailed. "I won't have a job and I'll just be a stupid Mudblood out on the streets, begging for gold."

"Lily, listen to me," James spoke softly. "You are not stupid and you are most certainly _not_ a Mudblood." His mouth twisted when he said it, like it caused him a great deal of physical pain. "And you did not fail. Just think of all the O's you'll get, when the results come."

"But I won't!" She sobbed. "I'll just get T's in every subject—"

"Lily Marie Evans. You listen to me and you listen good." James growled, rather disliking this sniveling, blubbering Lily. "You're the best of our class in Charms and Potions. In Care of Magical Creatures, you were always the one that answered the most questions. Same goes for Defense class. Remember when you knocked Professor Merrythought off his feet once?" Lily quieted down a bit, thinking about what James had said. "As for Divination and History of Magic, who cares about those two anyway?"

"James is right," Remus piped up. "And in Runes, you're the best translator out of all of us, hands-down. And you are just amazing at Arithmetic."

"But what about Astronomy?" She asked. "I suck at Astronomy."

Sirius had been watching all this time, but he simply couldn't stand it anymore. He needed the old Lily back, stat.

"Does it really matter, Evans?" He roared. "Who cares about getting a single E in a subject that you're not even pursuing? Just accept that you'll get straight Outstanding's already!"

Lily looked at him, thrown. For a second she couldn't even remember why she was crying in the first place.

"Guys?" She asked slowly. "Why was I crying again?"

They all looked incredulously at each other, and then burst out laughing.

"What?" Lily demanded, confused. Were they making fun of her?

"Oh Evans," Sirius chortled. "I do love you at times like these."

Marlene shot him a venomous glare. "But I love you more," Sirius added quickly, kissing his girlfriend's cheek.

James laughed lightly then looked down at Lily. "All back to normal then?

"Back to normal," She agreed, grinning. To his—and all their friends'—amazement, Lily raised her head and kissed James quickly on the cheek then promptly ran away.

"I can't believe it!" James shouted. "We need to have N.E.W.T's more often!"

"It's not N.E.W.T's, James," Alice informed him. "It's a very powerful thing called hormones."

James stopped mid-dance. "Wait, what?"

Marlene smirked. "Hormones, Potter, hormones."

The grin slowly slid off of James' face. "Damn those hormones," He growled.


	5. Headtosses?

James walked into the common room, tossing his head to see Lily curled up on the couch, reading.

"Hey, Lils," he grinned, tossing his hair again. She glanced up and frowned at him.

"What's with the headtoss?" she asked suspiciously.

"What?" James tossed his head again. Lily mimed him, tossing her long red hair. "Oh, that. It's to keep my hair out of my eyes."

"Wouldn't it be easier if you just, oh, I don't know, cut it?"

"Very funny, Lily." James loved her sarcastic streak, just not when it was used on him. "So funny that I forgot to laugh."

"Whatever." Lily turned back to her book, but didn't miss the last toss that James performed before going upstairs. She sighed. Boys these days.

* * *

><p>"Lily!" James called, jumping the last step of the stairs.<p>

"What?" she asked, not looking up this time. If she did, she'd just catch another head-toss. And she was perfectly fine without those in her life, thank you very much.

"Patrol," he reminded her, beaming with pride. "You owe me five Galleons!"

"No," she reminded him. "I said I'd give you five Galleons if you remember it for a week, not one little day!"

He tossed his head impatiently, and when that didn't work, used his hand to brush the overly-long hair away. "Let's go already."

Lily pinned on her badge and walked out with James, who tossed his head again.

"What did Sirius do to you?" she wondered.

"What?"

"What did Sirius do to you?" Lily repeated. "Are you trying to copy your mate's hairstyle?"

James went pink around the cheeks and didn't say anything.

Lily raised her eyebrows. "I think I like your old hair better."

James responded by tossing his hair, flicking it back with a finger when the toss proved to be ineffective yet again. Lily sighed, trying to ignore him. A difficult thing to do, as it turned out.

First level, done. A total of five head-tosses. Second level, check. Seven tosses. Third floor, ten. Twenty-eight head-tosses and seven floors later, Lily was practically fuming.

"That's it, Potter," she growled, dragging a scared James back to the Head common room. "You're getting a haircut."

"Oh, _Merlin_."


	6. Headtosses Part II

"This has a strange bondage feeling to it," James joked nervously as Lily pushed him down onto a chair and magicked handcuffs and ankle cuffs onto him.

"Shut it, Potter, unless you want your mouth Spellotaped shut." And James shut up.

Lily readied her scissors, experimentally opening and closing the blades several times. James winced at the sharp _swish _sound. Standing in front of him, Lily surveyed the mess atop his head, hands on her hips, eyes critical. James opened his mouth to comment of how beautiful she looked, before remember her threat and closing it again. She narrowed her eyes and went to work, an intense look of distaste on her face.

James couldn't help himself. "Why the Black family face?"

"What?" Lily snapped.

"Sirius's family? They all look like that. You're wearing that expression, it's like you've got dung under your nose." James stopped for a second. "Hence the Black family face."

"What I have right now under my nose is something known as your hair."

"Hey!" James exclaimed, offended. "I use Sleekeazy's Magical Men conditioner, you know!"

"Great." James couldn't see her face, but he was sure that she was rolling her eyes.

"My hair is one of a kind, Lily. Do not insult it," he huffed.

"James? Stop talking."

"Why?" James shuddered as her warm hand roamed over his left ear gently, pulling it back to snip off a bit of hair behind it.

"Because I said so."

"I can't!" he whined.

"Why ever not?"

"I was born to blab."

"That you are, Potter." She sounded amused. "That you are."

"And, uh, you know, it's passed down the family tree...my father's a fast talker too," James gabbled rapidly. "And it's most certainly not because of the fact that you're standing so close and touching my hair—" he froze mid-jabber. "Oh no. Tell me I didn't say that out loud."

"You're nervous because I'm touching your hair?"

"No, why? I'm very much at ease here, very very much..."

"Hmm..." Lily said slowly, holding back a smile. She stuck her hand into James's hair again and heard a sharp intake of breath. "If you say so..."

"Merlin, Lily," James groaned, giving up completely. "Why do you always have to be so smart?"

"Merlin, James," Lily teased. "Why do you always have to be so dumb?"

"I'm not dumb!" James exclaimed. "I don't think."

"Fine, love-struck then."

"That's only because you're here,"

She sighed. "Snap out of it, James. You're wasting your time on me."

"Oh?" James copied her earlier tone. "Then why are you touching my hair?"

"Because you're driving me mad with that headtoss!"

"And why would you care?"

"Because it's _annoying_?"

"Why would you look at me in the first place then?"

"If you haven't noticed, we're living together," Lily pointed out.

"So? You don't have to look at me," James reasoned. "Yet you still do. Why's that?"

"Because—!" Lily cried, outraged. "No. You know what? I am not going to answer that."

James smirked. "Because you fancy me."

"Ugh!" Lily threw down her scissors and stomped toward the stairs, leaving James to do a sort of demented bunny hop towards her. Miraculously, not only did he manage to reach her before she could climb up the stairs, but he also caught her by the wrist, in spite of his bound hands.

"Let go, Potter," she hissed, whirling around.

"Can't make me," he grinned, as unabashed as ever.

"Oh, really?" Lily leaned in, leaving almost no space between their faces. James dropped her wrist slowly, mesmerized by those stunning green eyes only inches away from his own.

Lily smirked and skipped up the stairs.


	7. Wait, what?

"James!" Lily yelled, storming down the staircase.

"I didn't do it!" James dropped the book he was pretending to read, his mouth automatically forming those words.

"Wait, what? You didn't?" Lily asked, pausing. James vigorously shook his head.

"Oh. Okay then." Lily turned and slowly walked back up the stairs, muttering to herself.

"Wait, what _didn't_ I do?" James wondered, scratching his head.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: this chapter is pretty short, I know. It's the true definition of a drabble because I came to the realization that my other chapters are too long to be called drabbles. Oh well. I shall continue to write not-quite-drabbles-and-not-quite-chapters for this story. I'm pretty busy these two or three days so expect more short stuff like this. Also, thanks to anyone who reviewedfavorite-d/subscribed! I love you all! :D**


	8. Oh, those idiots

For the first time in recorded history, the Gryffindor Common Room was peaceful and quiet. No ferocious pillow wars waged, no terrifying dares were carried out, and no one was being pranked. But this is the Gryffindor common room we're talking about, and that reason alone, is why peace and quiet never lasts.

"Lily!" Sirius bounded through the portrait hole.

"Lily!" James followed.

"Lily!" Remus grimaced as he followed his best friends' leads.

"Lily!" Peter squeaked, shuffling slowly in.

"What do you want?" the Lily-in-question sighed. Living with such close quarters with four people who possess as much energy as the Marauders never boded well. And Lily had participated in too many of their brilliant but stupid pranks to know that.

"We just wanted to say hi," James grinned.

"Hi," Sirius grinned too.

"Hello," Remus rolled his eyes.

"Hi," Peter said, then promptly turned red as Lily turned to smile at him.

"Hey, boys," She replied then turned back to her book.

"Okay, we'll go now." All four turned and trooped out. Lily rolled her eyes fondly.

"Such idiots," she said to herself. "Such adorable, stupid idiots."


	9. They're Still Friends Though

"Rise and shine!" Sirius crowed, energetically bouncing into the girl's dormitory. With a little too much energy, for my taste. I groaned and pulled the covers over my head.

"Lils!" He shook my shoulder. "Get up!"

"Go away, Sirius. I don't want to see your face right now," Marlene slurred. "None of us do."

Sirius clutched his heart and mimed dying on the ground. "Gosh, I'm hurt, Mar. Lily, I expected the reaction, but you? I guess the dictionary is right," he fake-sighed.

"If you're referring to 'dates before mates', then you're stupider than I thought," James snorted. "_D_ comes before _M_, you idiot."

"You're here too?" I asked tiredly, peeking out from under the blankets.

"Oh, come on, Lily. We're dating, and you still won't admit that you love me," James teased, pulling the covers away from me.

"James Potter!" I yelped. "Go away!"

"What in the name of Merlin's baggy Y Fronts was that for?" he said, rubbing his head where I'd slapped him.

"Well, James, Lily doesn't believe in pajamas, if you catch my drift," Marlene winked slyly, sitting up on Sirius' lap.

"That's why we always make sure to duck when she comes up and changes for bed," Dorcas added, sleepily rubbing her eyes. "That or run for the toilet." I chucked a pillow at Marlene, who dodged and the pillow hit Sirius instead.

"You lot are so mean," I grumbled. "But they're right, James, I don't wear pajamas."

James, far from being embarrassed, responded by being James. "But Lily! We're dating! Can't you let me see _anything?_"

"No." I grabbed my shirt from the nightstand.

"That isn't fair," he complained. "Sirius and Marlene, they've been all over each other for ages!"

"James Potter!" Marlene screeched. Everyone winced. That girl had quite a pair of lungs, I tell you. "THAT WAS PRIVATE INFORMATION!"

"POTTER!" Dorcas yelled. "We do not need those mental images, thank you very much."

Sirius smirked, not looking uncomfortable in the least. "You have to admit, they're _good_ mental images."

"Thank you, Sirius," Marlene sighed. "But next time, I'd appreciate it if you don't leak the details of us to everyone in the school, please."

"I didn't tell anyone except James!" Sirius protested. "We swap stories all the time."

"Bloody hell," James muttered.

"Well, _I_ swap stories, Jamie boy just listens 'cause he's never had one before," Sirius threw a roguish wink my way. I fought down the urge to strangle him.

"Bloody hell," James repeated. "I want to strangle you right now, Padfoot."

Huh. So we think the same way. Weird.

"Get out of our dorm," Alice grumbled with her head buried under her pillow

"I always knew you all loved us!" Sirius beamed.

"Black, if you don't get out of our sight in the next ten seconds, I'm going to hex your balls off." I warned, reaching for my wand.

He smirked even more. "You always say that, Evans, but we all know the only reason you want to do that is to take a good look at—"

"_Relashio Penisius._" I pointed my wand at the crotch of his pants. He jumped up, hopping up and down, screaming bloody murder.

"GOD_DAMMIT_, EVANS!"

"That was my boyfriend you just hexed, Lily," Marlene complained. "Now I have to reattach his willy back on again. For the _bloody seventeenth time_."

Mary's eyes bulged out. "You mean you've done it before?"

"Plenty of times." Marlene glared pointedly at me. "Thanks to this girl that I call my best friend right here."

I smiled innocently at her. "Oh yes. Cursing off someone's you-know-whats is a highly adequate way to get what you want."

"Good luck with this girl, James," Alice laughed.

James gulped. "You wouldn't do that to me, would you, Lily?" he asked in a shaky voice.

"Wouldn't I?" I smirked, reaching for my wand once more. "Relashio—"

The door to the dormitory slammed and James was gone.

* * *

><p>AN: Thank you so much, my lovely reviewers! Every time I open up my inbox and see the emails from fanfiction, I get so happy and squeal-y, it's almost embarrassing ._. But yeah, your reviews really motivate me to not be such a lazy ass and actually write xD My parents have banned me from writing so if this chapter was bad, know that completed in a hurry at school this morning. I dunno, I'm sort of running out of ideas, so if you have one, please let me know in a review! Dare me anything, as long as it's not too M-rated :D<p>

~Gella


	10. Mean Lily

"I feel terrible," I grumbled, sitting down at the breakfast table.

"What happened?" James immediately asked, concerned. I sighed exasperatedly.

"You did." Closing my eyes, I massaged my temples.

"What?"

"Keep talking and I'll give you terrible," I growled. With that he shut up.

* * *

><p>"You didn't have to be so mean," Alice shook her head at me. I grinned, my 'grouchiness' all gone.<p>

"It worked," I reminded her. She just laughed.

"Oh, Lily. What would I do without you?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I siriusly love you guys. I'm feeling a lot like what Lily felt like in the beginning part because not being able to write is driving me insane (for MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword, it's because my parents said I sit in front my laptop too much, so they got me hooked on ping-pong and I play for an hour a day, and not nearly enough time to write decent chapters) but your reviews are helping so much! If you don't want me to go insane—more than I already am—then REVIEW! Wow, I sound desperate ._.<strong>

**~Gella**


	11. To Radishes

James woke to the tapping of talons on glass. "Wha….?" His voice was muffled. Opening one eye, he saw a beautiful tawny owl at the window, impatiently pecking at the glass.

"Who do you belong to?" He asked lazily as he rolled out of bed and let the owl in. it hooted in response and lifted out its leg, where a letter was attached. "To Lily," He read. "Oh, you're Lily's owl?"

Hoot.

"That's a yes," James muttered. "Right, I'll go give this to her. Er…run along now, I suppose."

The owl gave an offended hoot and flew off, heading for the Owlery. James rubbed his eyes and walked to Lily's dorm, in the Head common room that they shared.

"Lily?" He called, knocking at the door. No response. He knocked again, harder.

"James?"

"Yeah."

"Go away."

"I've got your letter," He called through the door, not thwarted.

"What letter?"

"The one that reads 'To Lily' on the front."

"Oh? I was waiting for the one that said 'To Radishes'," She said sarcastically, opening the door. James found himself face to face with a grumpy-faced, tousled-haired Lily, clad in a green tank top and shorts. She was still beautiful though, in his opinion. "Give it here, Potter."

James was about to hand it over when something clicked. "Wait."

"What? I don't need to look at you in your underwear more than I need to," Lily complained. "I swear a few brain cells just died."

"You called me James, before," he said slowly, ignoring her.

"And?"

"You called me by my first name!"

"So?"

"That means I've actually got a chance!" James started dancing in place. Lily sighed.

"Now, my letter please…?"

"Oh. Right," James gave the envelope to her. She shut the door in his face. But that's okay; Lily Evans had finally called him 'James'!

"Guys!" James ran into the boys' dormitory in the Gryffindor common room. "Lily just called me by my first name!"

"What?" Remus mumbled, turning over.

"She just called me James! Isn't that amazing?" James beamed at his best friends.

"Incredible," Peter murmured, drooling on his pillow.

"Amazing…absolutely…amazing," Remus agreed. Then a snore drowned out the rest of his words.

"Great, Prongs, now go away and let us sleep," Sirius grumbled, not even bothering to open his eyes.

"Love you all too," James grinned.


	12. A Summon Gone Wrong

"Alice!" I yelled.

"What?" She yelled back, breaking away from Frank. I veered away, clapping a hand to my mouth.

"Never mind," I grouched. "I'll get back to you when you're not eating Frank's lips off."

"Have it your way, Lily," She shrugged and they became attached to each by the mouth once more.

"Mary?" I ran into the girls' dormitory and immediately wished I hadn't.

"Lily!" She shouted, red in the face.

"Oh my Merlin Mary."

"I'm sorry!" She wailed. "And that's why you don't randomly stick your head into people's dormitories!"

"I won't," I vowed readily. "But do _not_ snog in my dorm."

"Fine then." She huffed. I ran out as fast as I can, leaving behind an angry Mary and a terrified Remus.

"Marlene?" I called half-heartedly. "Come out if you're not…engaged in physical activity with Sirius."

"Sorry Lils," Sirius' voice floated from the boys' dorm. "She's busy right now.

"I'll bet," I muttered, completely disgusted. There was only one girl that I could go to now, and I'm pretty sure she had Quidditch practice. Nevertheless, I scanned around the crowded common room for Dorcas' brunette head. She wasn't there. Sighing, I grabbed my jacket from my chair and tramped down to the Quidditch field. But unfortunately, not only was Dorcas not there, someone that I could do without _was_.

"Hey Lily," The handsome, arrogant face of James Potter grinned at me. "Come to see me display my outstanding Chaser abilities?"

"Shut up, Potter. Have you seen Dorcas?"

"And if I did, what would you give me?" He asked with a cocky raise of his eyebrow.

"A punch in the nose," I snapped. "Now where is she?"

"I'm not telling," The insufferable prat smirked. "Unless you give me a kiss, Lily."

"Forget it," I retorted. "And next time you say my name, choke on it."

"I will, love, don't worry!" He called after me amid the laughter of his teammates. I fumed and fought down the urge to turn around the jinx him into next Wednesday. What wouldn't I do for the chance to hit that fat head with a nice Bat-Bogey Hex right now. _Calm down, Lily,_ I told myself. Now's not the time. Maybe later, when I'm not running around the castle trying to know if we have a test in Defense class tomorrow or not. And Dorcas was my last hope.

"I wonder if it'll work if I try to Summon her," I wondered. That was pretty good idea, I thought. By this rate, I'll spend ages looking for her when she could be anywhere; a Summoning Char is definitely my best bet right now. "_Accio Dorcas!_"

Oh, it worked all right. The tall frame of Dorcas Meadowes busted out of a broom closet, rounded a few corners, flew down the Charms corridor, dodged a statue, and hovered in front of me. But that wasn't the highlight of it. Someone was with her; almost _glued_ to her. By the lips. Yes, that's right, my tomboy best friend, the one who shook her head at our other lovesick friends, the last person in the world that would snog a boy, _Dorcas Maria Meadowes_, was floating a few inches above the ground, with her face literally jammed to the boy's. For a few seconds, I stared.

"Blimey," I said finally. "That must've been a strong Summoning Charm, if I brought your little _friend_—"

Extra emphasis on the word 'friend'. "—here too."

Dorcas glared at me. "Lily, not now," She warned.

"Oh no," I agreed. "Definitely not now. You'll be getting it later, mark my words."

She grudgingly broke apart from the unidentified male and landed. "See you later, then."

The poor bloke glanced from me to her, his expression one of pure terror.

"Run along," I told him. He obliged, sprinting away from us. Me and Dorcas walked back to the common room in a stony silence, Dorcas with her arms crossed angrily. Once we got to our dorm—thankfully Mary and Remus had moved somewhere else to snog—I turned to face her.

"So," I said finally.

"So what? If you're going to talk about me snogging him, then forget it," Dorcas said angrily. I flinched from the venom in her voice.

"Actually, I wasn't," I matched her icy tone. "I was going to ask if we have a test tomorrow or not."

That got her. "Oh."

"No need to lash out at people who care for you, Dor," I said gently. "You're my best friend and I accept whatever you decide to do." _I must accept it,_ I thought. There are way too many major changes here for my liking.

"I'm sorry, Lily," She said softly. "I was just—I mean, I don't know, but I'm just always the none-lovestruck one out of all of us. I didn't know how you'd react to this."

"Oh Dor," I hugged her. "You know that I'd always love you, no matter what."

* * *

><p><em>The next day….<em>

I hummed a little tune, heading for the Ravenclaw table, looking for a certain Tim Martins. I spotted his dark brown hair at the far end.

"Hello," I said, plopping down next to him. He eyed me suspiciously. "I'm Lily Evans."

"Aren't you and James Potter supposed to be together or something?" He asked. I sighed; of course _that_ was the first thing that people assume about me.

"No, we're not. But I _am_ the best friend of Dorcas Meadowes," I informed him. His eyes widened.

"You're that girl that Summoned us last night!" He gasped.

"Correct," I confirmed.

"You seemed pretty put-off," He remarked.

"So I was. But I've come to accept that you and her are now _together,_ as you put it," I smirked, and was satisfied that he blushed.

"So…..you aren't going to kill her? Or me?" He asked hopefully. I sighed again: that's the second thing that people assume about me, that I've come to kill them. Why _is_ that?

"No, at least for the time being. However, if you hurt her in anyway at all, I don't care on purpose or accidental, I _will_ kill you then," I promised cheerfully. "Have a nice day."

And I left him there to stare after me, horrified. That's the one advantage of being Lily Evans, at least.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: OMG. Seven reviews for one chapter? You guys are absolutely AMAZING. Well, here goes my usual shoutouts:<strong>

**Ojjy: I'm glad you enjoyed my writing :D**

**Cassandra Brighteye: thank you so much! That really means a lot =)**

**Anonymous-person-who-didn't-leave-a-name-in-an-anonymous-review: -first of all, I sincerely hope that's not your real name, I just made it up on the spot, hope you're not offended. Second of all, thank you for reviewing! I try to make my chapters funny, but I don't really think they're that good, so your review really lifted my spirits!**

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: Hahaha yeah my friend read it and she was like, "Dude. Is James like stupid or something?" Hehe yes, I was kinda trying to make him really dumbed by love, lol. And how did it go on your quiz?**

**Potato unicorn: I know right? Lily's just like, "Shut up and go die in a hole" and James is totally "OMG SHE CALLED ME BY MY FIRST NAME :DD" That's why I love writing about them, they're just so fun to write about and I can do really crazy stuff them.**

**Kat-not-lean: Wow I'm scared….what are you gonna do, threaten me with a pen? ;)**

**Lunalucy: don't worry, I'm going to write more :D As to Lily and James get together, you might just have to wait a while. Remember, this is only fourth year…and I plan to have a fic for every year consecutive to this ;)**

**Well, I'm going camping this weekend, isn't it fun? Yeah, I don't think so either. I'd much rather sit at home with my laptop than spend it holed up in a car for eight hours then finally arrive and spend that time clutching a fishing pole. So that means I won't be updating for two whole days, maybe three….no, I don't know how I got myself into this, but there's no going back. Just wish me luck, won't you?**

**~Gella**


	13. And that's all I need

"Isn't this pretty?" Lily snapped another photo of the brilliant red leaves.

"Beautiful," James agreed, gazing at her. "It's the same color as your hair."

Lily rolled her eyes; she had expected his reaction to be something along those lines. "James, I know how much you love my hair, but try to enjoy actual nature this time,"

"Fine," James looked around the small campsite. "Those shrubs over there? They match the color of your eyes."

"My eyes aren't nature," She reminded him, raising her camera again to capture a single maple leaf falling through the cool, autumn air.

"To me they are," He pulled her close. "They're more beautiful than the entire world."

"You haven't seen much of the world, then," She whispered back, the camera forgotten.

"I don't need to," He replied, brushing his lips along her cheek. "I've got you."

"And?" She prompted, pulling herself onto James' lap.

"And that's all I need in my life," He finished with a gentle kiss.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Right. I'll give shoutouts some other time because don't you hate it when the AN's longer than the actual chapter? This was sorta based on my camping experience, which turned out to be not so bad after all. I'm thinking of writing a fic of that, in Marauders era. What do you think? Leave it in a review or PM me! And what about those dares? I siriusly need some ideas.<strong>

**~Gella**


	14. Forever

Lily was having a perfect day until lunch. Her essay in Charms got an O; she earned a total of fifty points for Gryffindor in Potions, and even History of Magic wasn't even that boring. So overall, yes, she was in a relatively good mood. All that changed, however, when Sirius Black sat down across from her at the Gryffindor table.

"Hello," He grinned. She ignored him. "I'm Sirius."

Her best friend, Marlene McKinnon swooned. Alice Prewitt's fork kept missing her mouth as she stared, openmouthed.

"What do you want, Black?" She asked coldly, glaring at him. He grinned even more, now let down by her unfriendliness.

"Someone's grumpy," He remarked, pulling on the smirk that had most females drooling at his feet. It made Lily want to chuck a book at his face.

"What. Do. You. Want." She asked through clenched teeth. Sirius sighed.

"I see no easy way to break this to you, Evans, but someone fancies you."

"I see." Lily pretended to be uninterested, though she had a slight inkling as to where this was leading.

"That someone happens to be my best mate," He gestured to the other end of the table, where the Marauders sat together, with Potter peering hopefully at them. Her hunch was proved.

"And does he know that I despise him?"

"I think so, yes," Sirius nodded. "But he's not going to give up."

"Well, tell him this for me, Black. If he wants to wait, he's going to have to wait forever."

"A right ray of sunshine, aren't you," he got up and stretched. "Well, nice talking with you, Evans."

"I'm afraid I can't say the same for you. Now please, get your arse out of here."

* * *

><p>Lily flopped onto her bed. "He fancies me! That prat fancies me!"<p>

"'That prat' happens to be one of the hottest boys in the entire school," Marlene informed her.

"Those clear, hazel eyes," Mary MacDonald said dreamily.

"His adorable, messy hair," Alice agreed.

"That incredibly large head," Lily snorted. "I know he's good-looking, and apparently the height of cool, but he is such a _prat!"_

"Lily, look." Marlene looked as if she was trying to explain one plus one equals two to a temperamental toddler. "You're smart, pretty, and talented. Naturally boys are going to fancy you. And what's more, _James Potter_ fancies you."

"That's exactly what's bothering me!" She moaned. "James Potter, the biggest showoff, idiot, _prat_, I've ever had the misfortune to meet, fancies me. Who knows what he'll do?"

"Anything for love, they say," Alice's eyes sparkled.

"Anything? _Anything?_" Lily practically yelled.

"Er, yes," Alice looked scared.

"Does that include staying the hell away from me?"

"Um, I don't believe so…"

"Damn."

"Lily, one day you're going to have to deal with the fact that boys will flock to you," Marlene said abruptly. "Might as well as start now."

"And one day someone will fancy _you_," I pointed at her. "And you," Alice. "And you." Mary. "Someday someone will fancy all of you, maybe even propose and marry you."

"All right, Lily, that's going a bit too far," Mary protested. "We're only eleven!"

"I said someday," Lily smirked.

"Well, good luck with that," Marlene rolled her eyes. "As if anyone will like me!"

"Oh Marlene," Lily poked her best friend. "I'm sure someone will, like maybe, Peter Pettigrew?"

"No!" Marlene yelped. "I'd rather die than have _him_ fancy me!"

"Now you know how I feel about Potter fancying me," Lily sighed.

"But James is so good-looking!" Marlene complained. "And Pettigrew is….Pettigrew."

"Wrong. Potter is an arrogant toerag, and Peter is an honest, hard-working bloke who's not the best at magic," Lily corrected her.

"You wouldn't trade James for him, would you?" Mary asked with her eyes wide.

"Wouldn't I? At least I can tolerate Peter. Potter, on the other hand, is absolutely insufferable."

"Merlin, Lily," Alice joked. "Do you actually use the dictionary to look up words to describe James? Because I'm pretty sure I haven't ever used 'insufferable' or 'arrogant toerag' in my speech."

"Oh, shove off."

"But Lily. Seriously. If James changed his ways, would you at least consider him?"

"If he changed his ways, fixed his hair, deflated his head, stopped hexing people just for the hell of it, stopped showing off on every effing subject we have, then yes, he stands a chance."

"So all you gotta do now is wait for all that to happen," Marlene said brightly.

"I'm going to have to wait forever then."

* * *

><p>"Mate, you don't stand a chance," Sirius said to his best friend, who was on his belly on the carpet in the boys' dormitory. "She honestly hates your guts."<p>

"Whatever. She'll realize how much she loves me, one day," James said dismissively.

"_One day_ being the key words here," Sirius retorted. "I don't think she's all that impressive with you, not nearly as much as you think she is."

"What a cheerful fellow you are," James sighed. "But I'm _me!_ How can anyone not like me?" Sirius coughed politely. James gave him a look.

"I think that's one of the factors here, mate. I don't think Evans enjoys her man being extremely conceited."

"Oh, you're one to talk," James snapped. Sirius held up his hands in surrender.

"Just trying to help, Jamie boy. Besides, she told me to tell you that if you're going to wait for her to come around, you're going to have to wait forever."

"If that's what it takes, then I _will_ wait forever," James whispered.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Right, now here comes the shoutouts :D<strong>

**Wingswordsandmetaphors: wow, it seems like you reviewed almost every chapter :D oh wait, I'm so stupid. You really did review almost every single chapter! Thank you so much! Thanks also for reviewing on my other L&J fic :)**

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: nope, I didn't have Internet access. So I just wrote. A lot. But you know, camping was fun, because it's not every day that you get to suntan on a sheer sand cliff that leads straight into the depths of Lake Michigan, and it's every day that you see forty-pound trout jumping out of rivers, and it's not every day that you receive about fifty bug bites in a hour. Joking about the bug bites one. Camping was actually—dare I say it—amazing. But I'd still prefer to sit at home and write instead :D **

**RescueRockRose: Thanks for taking your time and reading my story :D It really means a lot to me. Hopefully you'll become one of my frequent reviewers. Thank you again!**

**Thegirlwithnoname: first of all, hello there! You're the first person I've met that doesn't have a name :D Anyhoo, the Marauders are Marauders, are they not? So they could've levitated themselves, Transfigured something, flew up on a broomstick, tied a rope and climbed it like a mountain, I can go on and on. Anything's possible when you've got Sirius and James.**

**Potato unicorn: Oh yes. These are drabbles, so anything can happen. Some chapters will be in the early years, where Lily hates James' guts and some chapters could be about their romance in seventh year. Thanks anyway, even though you're not the ideas type :D**

**Night's warrior: YAY new reader :D Yes, most of my drabbles are about them at Hogwarts, where Lily hated James for the majority of her school life, but they can have cute moments too, and this is one of them.**

**Skaterofthebooks: lol xD seems like that for me too, wonder why. I'm such a loving and sweet person; why would they assume that? Hehe yeah, poor Lily. All she wanted to know was whether they had a test tomorrow and she sees some things that she'd rather not see.**

**Minor Edit: in my shoutout to Lunalucy in Chapter Sixteen, I mixed this story and my other L&J story up, so yes, you probably will see them get together, somewhere along the way :D**

**Again, thank you, everyone who reviewed/fave-d/subscribed/wished me luck on camping. Love you all!**

**~Gella**


	15. Family Issues

Sirius was in a bad mood. Not a 'I-got-another-week-of-detention' type—often used when they were at Hogwarts— nor a 'Marlene-made-me-sleep-on-the-couch-again' type—which he uses quite frequently now—but a serious one. A really, really Sirius one.

"What's up, Padfoot?" James asked cautiously. Sirius didn't look at him, scowling instead at the empty bottle of firewhiskey by his hand and opening another. James sighed. He recognized this behavior. "It's your dear old mum again, isn't it?"

"Damn right it is," His best friend growled, slamming the bottle onto the dinner table, spilling most of its contents.

"What'd she do this time?" James asked sympathetically. Sirius let out a hollow bark of laughter.

"Oh, nothing much, just the minor fact that her and my dad wrote me out of their will. Like I'd want their shit anyway!"

"And?" James knew this wasn't the thing that angered Sirius the most.

"And Reggy's done it. He's got the damned mark."

"Oh Merlin," James breathed.

"He's really one of them now, I suppose,"

"Listen, mate. Don't worry too much about your nutter of a family. You're not like them," James told him firmly. Sirius grunted in response.

"I'm a Black, Prongs. Just by _being _a Black, people just automatically assume that I'm just like them." There was something in his voice that even James couldn't identify. Anguish? Regret? James sighed again.

"Well, you're not. You wouldn't trade your friends and family for a bunch of backstabbing morons, would you?"

"Family?" There was that hollow sound again, much too bitter to be a laugh. "I have no family."

"_I_ am your family. Us. Me, Lily, Peter, Remus, and Marlene, we're your family now. Always has been, always will be."

Sirius looked up, and for the first time, a phantom of a smile appeared in his eyes.


	16. Gratitude

I hated James. Absolutely and irrevocably hated him. I hated that he'd trip people in the corridors just for a laugh; I hated that he pulled pranks on innocent little first years; I hate him for so many reason that I don't even bother to keep track of all of them anymore. However, I especially hate him for one thing: his constant begging me to go out with him.

"Oi Lily! Wanna go to Hogsmeade with me?" That was his usual way to start conversations with me. Very short-lived conversations, may I add.

"No, Potter. Shut your trap and go away," I'd reply.

"Aw, c'mon, Evans. You know you want to!"

That was the point when my friends would have to hold me back from hexing his sorry arse to China.

Now that you, dear reader, are all caught up on our history, you might sympathize with me a bit, yeah? But if you are, perchance, part of the small percentage of nutters who think my hate is unjust, then please close this booklet and toss it into the fire, or forever hold your peace.

All aboard? Good. Off we go!

So I was sitting quite calmly in Charms class the other day, diligently taking notes that my friends would desperately copy down later, when a balled-up piece of paper hit my head. I glared in Potter's direction, and saw him gazing intently at Professor Flitwick. That did nothing but solidify my hunch that it was he who threw the paper. I turned back to my notes and hoped that he'd stop. I should've known better. In ten minutes, my little collection now consists of five balls. I pointedly ignored him, taking notes with my hand so heavy that my quill tip was about to break. Then…PLONK! Another missile sailed this way. However, missed its intended target and instead landed squarely on Flitwick's desk.

"So, ladies and gentlemen, the Cheering Charm—Merlin's beard, what is this?" The small teacher exclaimed, hopping back onto his stack of books that he's fallen down in shock. My eyes met Potter's, and I cracked my knuckles._ You are going to pay,_ I warned silently. He grimaced back. To my horror, Flitwick opened up the crumbled-up paper and flattened it on his desk. "I…love…..Lily….Evans?" He read out loud. The whole class sniggered. I closed my eyes briefly, cursing my life. "Miss Evans, what is the meaning of this?" The usually-mellow teacher barked, snapping me out of my trance. I counted backwards to ten, contemplating how to answer. "Miss Evans! I am waiting here!"

My cheeks grew hot and I looked down at the floor. _This is such a disaster,_ I moaned inwardly. Flitwick was tapping his shoes on the top book, and the tap-tap sound reminded me of a clock, ticking my dignity away. I then did the only thing deemed rational. I ran out of the classroom amid stares and snickers. My hands wrapped around a doorknob and I yanked it open, collapsing down on a bucket. That's where Potter found me, a few minutes later, curled up in a broom closet.

"Go away," I tried to growl but it came out like a sob.

"I've got your stuff," He said softly. "So that you didn't have to go back to class to get it." That surprised me. Standing up slowly, I opened the door and gave him a hesitant, watery smile. For the first time in my life, I was grateful for James Potter.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is what I wrote for my writing exam today :D The topic was 'Gratitude' and I think I've cut my luck pretty fine, by starting the whole thing with 'I hated James' and all xD<strong>

**Please tell me in a review if you think I've passed the exam! This is the annual state exam for all students and it's pretty important ._. Also, I've got a chapter to read for math, not to mention two worksheets. Yup, definitely procrastinating :D**

**~Gella**


	17. That First Day on the Hogwarts Express

James could hardly stay still. He and his parents stood on Platform 93/4 with his family. His father was engaged in a heated conversation with a bloke with a gigantic belly and his mother was enthusiastically discussing knitting patterns with a quite dreary-looking old witch. James himself stood gazing at the scarlet, steaming train, the one that he would be hopping on in a matter of minutes. Students milled around it, some hugging family members and some sprinting after old friends. James impatiently tugged on his father's arm.

"Dad!" He said loudly, interrupting his father in mid-sentence. Charlus Potter glared at his son, but James had seen that look before, and it didn't scare him one bit. If anything, it was Mum who dished out the most terrifying punishments. "Dad, I'm leaving for Hogwarts in five minutes, and all you could do its stand chatting with some old bloke?" he looked at the said 'old bloke'. "No offense to you, sir."

The 'old bloke', far from being offended, chuckled lightly. "Much nerve you've got, young sir. Like father, like son, I suppose, eh, Charlie?" He commented. James looked up; in all his eleven years, no one had actually called his father 'Charlie' before, not even his mum. And James did notice that at this point 'Charlie's' smile grew rather glazed.

"A good member of the Slug Club, he'll make, mark my words," Whatever the Slug Club was, it must be something of great importance because the already-prominent belly puffed out even further. "You were in it, were you not?"

"Ah, yes." James' dad said in a tone clearly meant to be reminiscent. James thought he sounded as though he had a bad stomachache. "Such lovely dinner parties."

"Well, I'll let this brass young man reclaim his father," The big-bellied man strode off with a genial farewell wave. "Goodbye!"

"Thank Merlin that's over," Charlus muttered. "Let's go find your mum."

* * *

><p>"Bye Jamie!" Dorea Potter said tearfully. "Now, don't forget to write to us at least twice a month, change your underwear daily—I packed some extras in the trunk—and if you run out of spending money, just owl home and we'll send you some more!"<p>

"Mum," James complained, wriggling out of her death grip. "I'll write to you every day, I won't forget to change my underwear, and I won't hesitate to ask for money."

"That's my Jamie-poo!" Mrs. Potter wrapped her arms around her baby boy once more. James face promptly turned purple.

"Honey," Mr. Potter said gently, saving James from death by suffocation. "Now, son, no pranks, all right?"

James deflated a bit, but agreed grudgingly.

"Don't cross Peeves or the Bloody Baron."

"Who are those?" James asked interestedly. His father sighed.

"Never mind." The train started whistling then, saving more awkward questions from being asked.

"Bye, Mum and Dad!" James called, exhilarated, the wind blowing through his hair. His father started running alongside the train, like so many other parents, and his mother kept waving until the train rounded the corner and she was out of sight.

James took a deep breath. His new adventure had begun!

Now that was established, he needed to sort out the matter of finding a compartment. Dragging his heavy trunk and owl cage along with him, he embarked on the severely difficult endeavor of finding a place to sit. The first compartment he peered into was full of nasty-looking Slytherins. He gave them a weak smile and immediately went on the next. A lost-looking Hufflepuff boy sat there alone. James coughed uncomfortably and moved on. So it was that James Potter wandered around like a homeless puppy before finding an empty compartment and collapsing into it, panting; his trunk had seemed to get heavier and heavier. James didn't particularly care about how loser-ish he looked at the moment; all he really needed was rest. He stayed in that position for a while, and after regaining enough energy to sit straight again, he took out his wand and tried to look as if he wasn't as lost as he really was.

He amused himself with making colorful sparks fly out of his wand tip and even managed to change a small beetle into a pebble one time. He was marveling at the rock—which had previously been an unoffending insect—when the compartment door flew open.

"Shut up and leave me alone, _cousin,_" A black-haired boy snarled, twisting free of an evil-looking fourth year's arms. "I can handle myself, thank you very much."

"Oh, wittle Siwius thwinks he's macho," the girl crooned in a mocking voice, then abruptly changed her tone. "You mother told us to watch out for you, you idiot! In case you go around making friends with the wrong type!"

"Yeah?" the boy named Sirius retorted. "As though I'll ever be friends with you!"

"Watch your step, dear cousin," the girl hissed menacingly. "Or I'll be forced to write home to Mum!"

"Write to her all you want, Bellatrix. I wouldn't give a damn." With that, the bloke slammed the compartment door shut, breathing heavily in anger. Turning around, Sirius froze, seeing James sitting there awkwardly, his wand still in his hands. The silence was so hard; he could practically reach out and feel it.

"Hello," James said finally. "That was quite a row you just had."

"Tell me about it," Sirius grunted.

"You can sit here, you know, if you want to," James offered. Sirius nodded and heaved his trunk unto the storage rack then sidled into a seat across from James, looking at his hands.

"I'm James," he stuck out a hand. "James Potter."

Sirius' stormy grey eyes glanced up, then flickered to the outstretched hand. Hesitantly, as though he wasn't sure if he'd regret this or not, Sirius shook the hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Sirius."

"I know you're serious," James said with a half-smile. "You haven't given me any reason to doubt that."

Sirius smirked back. "Potter, eh?"

"That's right, Sirius. And your surname is….?"

The eyes darkened. "Black. Sirius Orion Black."

James shrugged. "James Charlus Potter."

"Your mum is Dorea?" Sirius asked, taking James by surprise.

"How did you know?" James asked suspiciously. Sirius chuckled.

"My mother made quite a fit when she found out that a Black married a blood-traitor," Sirius explained.

"My mum is related to you?" James was completely bewildered.

"Yep," Sirius said grimly. "Dorea Black is actually one of my distant aunts."

"That'll make us distant cousins!" James said with a grin. Sirius smiled humorlessly.

"Better you than my other cousins."

"Was that…girl one of your cousins?" James asked cautiously.

"Not sure she's completely human, but yes. Bellatrix Black, Narcissa Black, and Andromeda Black all go to Hogwarts."

"Blimey, you've got a pretty big family," James said in wonder.

"Too big." He said darkly.

At this point another pair had intruded in their compartment. Sirius and James paid them no attention and went on with their conversation, though James couldn't help but sneak a peek at the pretty red-haired girl once every few minutes. Sirius noticed this and smirked at his new friend. James colored a bit, but otherwise ignored it.

"So what do you think of the new Cleansweep that just came out?" James said hurriedly, changing the topic. Sirius was grinning: this was perfect. There was a girl to tease James about now. James sighed inwardly but still absent-mindedly eavesdropped on the girl and her rather greasy-haired companion's conversation. He caught snipes of phrases, but only one word roused his attention.

"Slytherin?" James interrupted Sirius in mid-sentence. "Who'd want to be in Slytherin? I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" He asked Sirius, who did not smirk as James expected him to.

"My whole family's been in Slytherin," Sirius said sadly.

"Blimey! And I thought you seemed all right!" James exclaimed. Sirius grinned this time.

"Maybe I'll break the tradition. Where are you heading, if you've got a choice?"

James lifted an invisible sword. "'Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!' Like my dad."

The bloke sitting next to the girl made a small, disparaging sound. James rounded on him. "Got a problem with that?"

"No," He said, though his slight sneer said otherwise. "If you'd rather be brawny than brainy—"

"Where are you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?" Interjected Sirius. James roared with laughter, high-fiving him. The redhead sat up, rather flushed, and looked from Sirius to James in dislike.

"Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment."

"Ooooooo…" Both James and Sirius imitated her lofty tone, then cracked up again.

"See ya, Snivellus!" Sirius called. James tried to trip him as he passed, but the girl caught the motion. She narrowed her eyes, and a look of extreme concentration appeared in her beautiful green eyes. A few moments later—

"ARGH!" James hollered. "MY ARSE IS ON FIRE!"

Sirius almost fell over laughing. The girl and Snivellus smugly strode out.

"Here," Sirius managed to choke out, and opened up a water bottle and doused the seat of James' trousers then immediately fell into torrents of laughter again at the sight of James's charred behind.

Wincing, James heaved himself back into his seat. Sirius had his head down on the table, shoulders racking with the priceless memory. James grinned a bit. That girl had just earned his eternal respect.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Ah, accidental magic….gotta love it! I iz sorry for not updating yesterday holds out cookie for forgiveness I might not update again tomorrow, because the teachers are really overdoing it with the homework thing. Also, my first orchestra concert of the year is coming up, so I need to practice lots in order to not make a fool out of myself. Anyway, here goes:<strong>

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: thank you :D I really do hope I passed, or my parents would throw a very hissy fit. I can imagine them now: "You're supposed to be **_**GOOD**_** at writing! How'd you get a 'Needs Improvement' on **_**WRITING**_**?" Sigh…**

**Skaterofthebooks: Haha I know right? I kinda ran out of space at the end, and wasted an entire page bashing James….sigh. Oh well. I just hope that whoever grades my paper knows about Lily and James. I don't want them thinking that I'm one of those airheaded teenage girls who only care about boys and yada yada yada -_-**

**Potato unicorn: aww thanks :D I always imagined James to be like that: goofy and flirty on the outside, but he's got a solid, caring inside. Hopefully Lily sees that part of him soon xD**

**Thanks again to anyone who reviewed/fave-d/subscribed! This story is getting an insane amount of reviews, considering how short the chapters are…not that I'm complaining! Keep on being awesome, everyone!**

**~Gella**


	18. Why Do You Love?

This was an odd meeting. Anyone who has heard of the golden reign of the Marauders would agree. Severus Snape was leaning back against a tree and James Potter was throwing stones into the lake. They were not glaring at each other; they were not trying to kill each other.

They didn't speak.

The golden sunset made James' black hair gleam and Snape didn't look as unwanted as he normally did.

"Potter?" He spoke finally, trying hard to not sneer the word.

"Snape," James responded, refraining himself from calling the latter 'Snivellus'.

_Thunk, thunk, thunk. _More rocks sank into the lake. James waited for the other to speak.

"You love her, don't you." It wasn't a question, more a statement. James didn't have to ask who he was talking about.

"Yes, I do. More than life itself."

There was a long silence as Snape contemplated this. James chucked two more rocks, and a giant tentacle floated lazily to the top, gripping one stone tightly then disappeared under the water's surface again.

"You would do anything for her. You would die for her."

"I would," James confirmed, knowing that Snape was probing his mind. He allowed it, but kept certain memories in check.

"She's amazing," Snape said softly, all the memories of them as children flashing through his mind. Memories, now, were the only way to see her laugh, smile, instead of glaring at him. He thought of the fun they never had. Fifteen years was hardly enough time. He had originally planned for a lifetime.

"You love her, too."

"That, I do, Potter."

"And you regret calling her a Mudblood," James had fair skill at Legilimency himself.

"'Regret' is an understatement. I would give anything to take it back. If the price was my life, I would gladly give it up."

"I know."

"If you hurt her in any way, Potter, I swear on Salaazar Slytherin's honor that I will hunt you down and make you pay," Snape vowed. He did not growl those words. His tone suggested all the pretense of a friendly conversation, but something in his face would easily convince anyone that he meant what he said. James smiled sadly.

"I hope you won't ever see the need to do that."

"Potter. Tell her that I'm sorry," Snape whispered, tears threatening to spill over. "That I'm sorry for everything."

"She knows, Snape. She understands. And she forgives you."

"Give this to her," Snape pressed a small package wrapped in plain brown paper into James' hand. "And tell her how much I love her. Please."

"Don't worry, Snape. I will."

"Thank you."

* * *

><p>Lily sat on her bed, unwrapping the package curiously. James had given it to her this afternoon but didn't tell her who it was from, though Lily thought he was just acting dumb and trying to surprise her. So she was surprised when a small piece of parchment fell out of it.<p>

"To my dearest Lily," She read aloud. Definitely James, she thought, rolling her eyes. That theory was shattered by the next sentence. "Love, Severus."

A part of her wanted to fling this far and wide and never lay eyes on it again. But another part of her, the part that ached every time she saw him walk past her without a word, the part that flared in anger every time she saw him and Nott and Avery talk in low voices together, the part that longed for her childhood best friend, that part coaxed her into at least opening the package. Sighing, Lily dropped her head into her hands. When she emerged again, this Lily was determined that nothing inside will surprise her, make her feel bad for him. That had happened once and it had been just about the biggest mistake of her life.

_He's gone,_ she told herself. _The Severus you know is gone._

But she opened the package. Inside, a handsome leather album awaited her. Interested despite herself, she gently flipped it open.

Pictures met her eyes. Pictures of their favorite rendezvous point: the playground. Pictures of the two of them jumping into leaf piles, of the two of them lying side by side, of the two of them sitting on a sturdy oak branch. Such beautiful pictures.

As she flipped gently through the album, memories that she'd locked up deep inside her blossomed again. She remembered the shape of his smile, the tender look in his eyes, the way his brow creased when they were inventing spells together. She remembered spying on  
>Tuney, giggling behind her back, then ultimately facing her sister's wrath. She remembered sneaking out at night to meet him at the playground, she remembered building snowmen together, she remembered breaking off icicles and pretending they were wands. She remembered visiting Eileen Snape, whose gingerbread cookies rivaled that of her own mother's. She remembered standing by her grave, tightly holding his hand while unshed tears swam behind his eyes. She remembered everything. The fun, the thrill, the arguments. Everything and much more.<p>

She had reached the end. In the back cover, a small handwritten note was attached.

_Lily, I know I would be going too far by asking anything of you. So I won't. I won't ask for forgiveness. I won't ask you to put me back into your heart. I want you to remember the times we had. Those were the most amazing years of my life, but if you choose to forget them, that's all right. Because you will always be at the center of my heart, no matter what. I love you, Lily Evans. I love you._

A single tear droplet splashed onto the smooth leather cover as the tough shell Lily had built around herself collapsed.

"Oh, Severus," Lily whispered. "I won't have to replace you in my heart because you've never left it."

* * *

><p>He felt numb. His brain refused to accept the hard, bitter truth.<p>

She was gone. Gone forever.

Kneeling over her still, cold body, he let tears fall, for the first time in his life.

He did not weep at his mother's funeral. Yet he wept now.

He ignored the cries of the baby.

"Oh, Lily," He whispered brokenly. "Lily."

She did not move, but one sparkling tear leaked out of the corner of those beautiful green eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I don't want to do a terribly long AN to ruin the chapter so shoutouts some other time…<strong>

**I don't think I did Snape's pain justice, in that one little paragraph, so if you want to rewrite it, post it in a review! Speaking of that, I'm getting a pitiful small amount of reviews for my last two chapters. Don't want to sound whiny or anything, really. But your reviews are my lifelines, they motivate me to write! Without them I could barely finish this chapter. Just like how I can't get through sad books without chocolate….wait…**

**~Gella**

**PS: Anyone interested in Beta'ing? I read through some of my older chapters and I found sooo many mistakes ._. I feel ashamed.**


	19. Remus and Chocolate

"James, are you sure about this?" Remus asked worriedly. With these boys as his best friends, he won't be surprised if he gets gray hairs in before Christmas.

"Absolutely, Remmy," Sirius flashed his famous grin. If possible, this made Remus even more anxious about what they were doing.

"Oh, lighten up, Remus," James chided. "We're gonna be fine."

"Oh all right," he sighed, giving in. "But if anything happens, I'm going to kill both of you."

"Oh, you always say that, but you know you love us too much," James joked. "Come on, soldiers. Let's march!"

Remus held in a snort as the three of them awkwardly sidled from side to side under the Invisibility Cloak. At least he wasn't sandwiched between them, he reflected wisely. That really would be hell.

"Right. We're here," Sirius whispered, tapping the one-eyed witch with his wand. "_Dissendium,_" He hissed. The statue's neck jutted out to reveal a secret passageway. Remus hesitated. James grinned at him.

"Come on, Remus. Chocolate is waiting."

Without another word, Remus dove for the ladder.

* * *

><p>"I still don't like doing this," he mumbled around the huge pile of sweets that he had in his arms.<p>

"We left money, didn't we?" Sirius said impatiently. "Besides, why would there be a secret passageway anyway, if we couldn't sneak in? It's wasting away, just sitting there."

Remus really did snort this time. He couldn't ever argue past Sirius' 'logic'. It would be pointless to try.

"And Remus," James advised, hefting his own stash. "Just think of all the candy that we're holding right now. Especially the chocolate," He added, waggling his eyebrows.

"Oh yes," Sirius snickered. "Think of the—"

"The only thing that you'll be thinking about anytime soon is detention tomorrow with me, Mr. Black," McGonagall loomed before the three.

"Bloody hell," Remus muttered. "You two are so dead."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: A nice, short chapter about the misadventures of the Marauders. The three better Marauders, may I add. I needed a break from all the serious—xD—and depressing chapters that I was writing. Thanks to anyone who reviewedsubscribed/fave-d! Exams are tomorrow, which means I better start studying my arse off. Yay hoo -_-**

**~Gella**


	20. Drunk or Tipsy

The aftermath of a Marauder party is never good. This time, however, it's even worse than normal. It was Remus' seventeenth birthday, so of course his best mates had to drink themselves senseless. James wasn't as drunk as he would've been, because Lily had firmly locked him in the Heads dorm at around one in the morning. But even without James, the party carried on full-blast. And without James there to drain the firewhiskey, Sirius took on the job alone. And what happened as a result was _not_ good.

"Hey Lily," Sirius slurred, raising his twentieth, give or take a couple hundred, whiskey to his mouth, sloping half of the bottle down his shirt. "Don't you look fine today?"

Lily was used to this type of behavior; it happens after every Quidditch match and every one of the Marauders' birthdays. Remus himself had long since escaped but no one else seemed to want to leave. "Sirius, you're drunk."

"No I'm not!" He exclaimed, letting out a monster burp that made Lily turn her face away momentarily and gasp for fresh air. "Just a bit—" he held his fingers half an inch apart. "—tipsy."

"Is there a difference?" She asked wearily. With an idiotic grin—more idiotic than usual, that is—Sirius shook his head.

"Not really," He said thoughtfully. "But tipsy is when you start to do things that you normally wouldn't dare."

"Such as?" Lily humored him, while contemplating how best to get him up to his dorm before he did something truly stupid.

"Such as—" _Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuurp._ "Dunno, really."

"I see," Lily stood up, making to get away, but Sirius caught her by the wrist.

"Wait," He said, swigging the rest of the firewhiskey. "I think I know."

Warily, Lily gripped her wand underneath her shirt. _If push comes to shove,_ she thought silently, _well, let's just say there'll be time for apologies later._

"Being tipsy, my dearest Lily, is doing stuff like—" he literally fell forward and jammed his mouth to hers. Stunned and revolted, Lily did her best not to gag in his open mouth and pulled out her wand, ready to hex him—

"SIRIUS BLACK!" a voice shrieked. "WHAT THE _FUCK _DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

He came up for air, blinking stupidly. "What?"

Seething with livid rage, Marlene looked quite scary and Lily was surprised that Sirius wasn't quacking in his shoes by now. Of course, a contributing factor might be that he's too drunk—excuse me, _tipsy_—to see two feet in front of his own nose. "Snogging Lily—what else, you fat idiot?"

"Oh," Sirius grinned at his girlfriend, pulling away from Lily and wrapping his arms around Marlene's waist. "That."

"Yes, that," Marlene retorted. Lily coughed quietly.

"Mar, he's drunk—"

"Tipsy!" Protested Sirius angrily.

"—and he doesn't know what he's doing," Lily said to her best friend. "We need to get him to his dormitory. Right now."

With a shadow of doubt in her eyes, Marlene agreed. Together, the two witches heaved Sirius up to the dormitory, where Peter and Remus were already sound asleep.

"Shut up," Lily told him firmly. "And sleep."

"Okay," He smiled sneakily at her. "Care to join me, Mars?"

"I'm good, thanks." Marlene snapped. Lily Stunned him—he'd understand; it's pretty much routine—and the two girls walked down, ready to break up the party.

"Right, people," Lily shouted over the noise and the music. "Listen up!"

No one paid the slightest attention to her. "SHUT UP!" Marlene roared and instantly and entire common room was as silent as can be.

"Thanks," Lily muttered. "Right. Party's over. Head back to your dorms now!"

"And who're you to say that?" A blonde girl countered, scowling up at Lily.

"All four Marauders are all passed out somewhere. The firewhiskey's just about gone, and if you haven't noticed, it's three o'clock," Lily informed the room at large, folding her arms. Gradually, the people noticed that her words were true and shifted uncomfortable. "So run along, now!"

With a lot of grumbling and mumbling, the crowd eventually dispersed, leaving Lily and Marlene alone. Awkwardly, Lily spoke. "Mar, you know that he was drunk, right?"

"Yes," Marlene glowered, not looking at the redhead.

"And would I want to snog an idiot like that?"

She considered this. "Probably not," Marlene decided grudgingly. "Besides, you've got James."

"So….no hard feelings, yeah?" Lily bumped shoulders with her best friend, smiling a bit. Hesitantly, Marlene smiled back.

"Yeah. Though Sirius is getting a little talk when he recovers," Marlene growled.

"That's my girl," Lily grinned and hugged her.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Another short little chapter about daily life at Hogwarts, nothing sad or special or anything. That's only because I'm fast running out of ideas. MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword, I'm working on your dare of Lily teaching James what Muggles learn in school, but it's going to be a longer chapter so I'll post it in the near future, hopefully. The rest of you, dare me! Thanks to my reviewers, both old and new :)<strong>

**Midnightstar19: thank you so much :D **

**LilyLunaEvans: thanks :D and I love your username! xD**

**RoseScarlet118: lol thanks xD I like it too xD**

**PureAwesomeness: thanks and I'll try to keep up my speed of updating everyday :)**

**Potato unicorn: thank you :D I never mentioned this but potatoes and unicorns are both very, very awesome xD**

**Jacky Dupree: aww, that's all right. I forgive ya xD**

**PopiiD: thanks! I think aced them all but you never know….and usually when I think I aced something it turns out I've failed. I'm just so lucky, no?**

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: I noticed that you don't have a Beta profile, but I can still PM each new chapter over to you. Then you can edit and do whatnot and et cetera… **

**Lacey: Thanks! I really hope what you said will come true :P**

**Also, thanks to anyone who subscribed or added my stories to their favorite list. It really means a lot to me :')**

**~Gella**


	21. This Means War!

"Hey Lily," Sirius sat down from across her. She glared at him over the top of her book. "Whatcha doin'?"

"None of your business, Black," She said suspiciously, turning back to her book.

"Aw, come on. I'm so bored right now!"

"Good for you."

"Please!" Sirius whined. "You're my last hope!"

"Sirius Black. How many times have I told you: I will not get involved in one of your pranks ever again." She seethed. "You made me get me first detention!"

Sirius was amazed. "You got your _first _detention in _sixth year?_"

"Unlike some other people," Lily nodded. "When was your first one?"

"The first day of first year," Sirius grinned reminiscently. "Those were the days, man."

"Right. Now please get your behind out of my sight."

"But I'm still bored! Can't we at least go do _something?_" Sirius begged.

"Go snog Marlene senseless, like you normally do when you're bored,"

Sirius pouted at this. "We're on a little break from each other."

"Why?" Lily asked, barely glancing up. "To rest her sore vagina?"

Sirius' grin returned. "Ooh, Lily, you're thinking like a Marauder now. Good girl!"

"Shut it, Sirius. I shudder to think what you four have done to my mind." Lily really did shudder; her innocence was almost completely gone, thanks to them.

"Trust me, it's something good. Now, go apply that knowledge on James once he gets back from detention," Sirius urged. "You know, some hands-on experience," He added, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"SIRIUS BLACK!" Lily screamed, throwing her book down on the ground. "Leave me alone."

"Lily!" Sirius faked a shocked voice. "How could you do this to a library book?"

With steam practically pouring out of her ears, Lily stood up, hands on hips, glaring. Sirius cowered a bit. But you couldn't blame him; Lily can be almost as scary as McGonagall if it comes to it. "That's it, Black. This means war."

"War, eh?" Sirius asked shakily.

"War," Lily agreed grimly. "The Marauder way."

_To be continued…_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> **Today is my first-month anniversary with this fic! You guys are siriusly amazing. I mean, 75 reviews in one month? Keep up the awesome work, guys! :D**

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: Can you do me a favor? I'm assuming you said yes xD So can you go to my other fics and read them and determine if I need a beta after that because I don't want to burden you with every little drabble because of all the confusion and what with me trying to update every day and all that. And it's pretty annoying, don't you think, to have to proofread something short like these. So yeah. My other stories' chapters are longer; therefore I'm more likely to make typos and grammar mistakes and whatnot. :D**

**Skaterofthebooks: lol. Having a drunk boyfriend is never good xD But it makes good reading, yeah?**

**PoppiiD: I hope so too. I've been increasing my fanfic-reading-rate to get some vague ideas from other authors, then turn it into something of my own, with a different plotline and stuff like that. So if any of you see anything that bears resemblance to some other fic you've read, don't worry. It's not plagiarism. Or at least I don't think so. **

**Jaisler: Aww thanks :') new readers always makes me happy :D**

**Jacky Dupree: omg you're right. Emmeline Vance would be around the same age as them. I never realized that xD in my earlier days as a fanfic reader, I saw a story with Sirius & Marlene, James & Lily, Mary & Remus, Alice & Frank so it kind of stuck in my brain. But if you want, I can have a chapter where Emmeline and Marlene fight for Sirius' affections. That'd be pretty amusing.**

**~Gella**

**P.S: Anyone care to read some of my other fics? I have an in-progress L&J one and a post-DH Trio that's currently on hiatus but will be updated soon. Read and review? For me? Please? All right, love ya! **


	22. This Means War Part II

_Continued from This Means War!_

"War," Lily agreed grimly. "The Marauder way."

Sirius' grin nearly split his face in half. "You go, girl!"

"I call first dibs on the attack," She said. Sirius nodded sagely.

"Yeah. We're going to win anyways, so why not give you a head start?"

"You wish, Black," she growled, cracking her knuckles. "Now, shut up. For real. I'm fraternizing with the enemy. And trying to read," she added as an afterthought.

* * *

><p>Each side fought hard and bitter and the casualties piled higher and higher. Lily did indeed get first dibs, and she started it off nicely by sprinkling Itching Powder in Sirius' bedsheet, socks, and underwear. Striking back, he replaced her Potions essay with a blank sheet of parchment, while scratching himself in the most awkward places. In retort, Lily set his alarm clock to go off at three in the morning, waking up his entire dormitory. For that one, Sirius recruited all the Marauders to aid him in his counterattack. He flooded the girls' dorm, soaking their clothes, their beds, and their homework. Marlene was especially devastated at the loss of all her makeup, and for that, she vowed to destroy Sirius. With the girls on her side, Lily targeted to James and Sirius in particular, replacing their broomsticks with old, flimsy Shooting Stars—which were often outstripped by passing butterflies, as one Quidditch session had shown—disguised as James' and Sirius' top-of-the-line brooms. She paid for that when all the girls' undergarments went mysteriously missing. Having to resort to hand-wash the underwear they had on, Lily dealt a hard blow by Charming James' trainers to shrink, squeezing his feet to the point of the loss of circulation; jinxed Sirius' pants to inexplicably harden in the crotch every time Professor McGonagall passed him; stole Remus' homework; and routinely turned Peter's food bright purple. Furiously, the Marauders replaced the girls' shampoos with goblin urine. Lily responded by planting a pre-recorded cassette in the boys' dorm, and in the dead of night, it would make stirring and moaning sounds, occasionally with some heavy footsteps and screams like a banshee. The victim usually trembled under his covers, yet never to find what caused those strange noises. They didn't know it was a prank on Lily's side, either. And lily's side waited for the retaliation. The two opposing sides were stuck in a stalemate. It was time for a white flag, they realized.<p>

"Hey Sirius," Marlene smirked. "Is that your wand in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?"

He barely glanced down. "Right, Evans. A week was the longest period of time that we agreed on to have no pranks, but you've passed that deadline. You haven't made a move in a week and three days."

Lily snorted, incredulous. "But we _did_ make a move; therefore it _does_ count because you're the ones who passed the deadline without making a move. So we win."

"No," Sirius argued. "We didn't pass it."

"But there's evidence!" Lily said, throwing up her hands in exasperation. "_You_ went a week and three days without making a move. So _we_ win." She repeated.

"Ah, Evans," Sirius grinned broadly. "Here's the beauty of it. We agreed that a pre-planted prank would count, didn't we?"

Not liking where this was going, Lily nodded hesitantly. Sirius grinned wider. "And just because the prank hasn't occurred yet, doesn't mean it's not legit." Lily's eyes widened.

"So," She said slowly, realization dawning. "You're saying, there's a prank on your part, but we haven't discovered it yet?"

"I knew you'd get it eventually," Sirius shook his head. "Took you long enough, too."

And indeed the girls did get it. Eventually, of course.

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK!" Marlene screamed, flying down the girls' staircase, running as if Merlin was dancing in her dorm without pants on. He looked innocently up from his newspaper—Sirius? A newspaper?—and smiled charmingly.

"What is it, my darling?" He held back a laugh, knowing exactly what had happened. Lily emerged as well, gripping her head.

"I'm scarred—" she kept moaning. "I am going to kill you, Black!"

"What's going on?" Remus asked, gesturing to the two girls.

"They've discovered the last prank," He said proudly. "And I can tell you, it's even worse when girls see it."

Remus burst out laughing. "Was he doing the shuffle or the jazz steps?"

"I dunno," Sirius replied, smiling. "But it's definitely the neon yellow boxers."

"With polka dots, right?"

"With polka dots," Sirius winked. "And something else."

"I don't want to know," Remus grumbled. "Poor Lily and Marlene."

* * *

><p>"Here's the ten Galleons," Lily sighed, handing over the fat, gold coins. Sirius, James, Peter, and Remus accepted them with arrogant little smirks.<p>

"What did I tell you, Evans," Sirius jested. "I won after all."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Lily mumbled, stomping away. The Marauders laughed mockingly at her but Lily had one more trick up her sleeve. Smiling devilishly, Lily walked back to her dorm.

"I'm going to have to thank Professor Slughorn later for letting us borrow his leprechaun gold," She mused to herself.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Ha, Lily always wins in the end xD What'd you think of the 'war'? Cookies to anyone who can guess what the final prank was ;)<strong>

**Jacky Dupree: Hmm, sure. It'll just be like James and Lily; I think I can incorporate some of it in :D**

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: Thank you! And if you don't have time, don't worry about it. But if you do have time…thanks again!**

**Skaterofthebooks: not at all xD I think Sirius would've learned his lesson now!**

**Jaisler: Thanks! I'll make sure to update everyday :)**

**Potato unicorn: Sirius and Lily are probably two of my favorite Marauders (yes, I count Lily as a Marauder too. She's amazing at pranks.) Hope this chapter lived up to your standards :D**

**RescueRockRose: —shakes head—sigh. Boys these days :P lol xD**

**PureAwesomeness: yes, Lily is pretty epic, isn't she? :'D **

**Thanks always to anyone who reviewed/subscribed/favorite-d! I feel so fortunate to have you guys support me; today I saw a bunch of fic that deserve way more the reviews that than they have right now. And if you're one of the authors reading this—I probably left a review on your story—then I just want to say "YOU GO GIRL OR BOY OR BOTH!" Ahem. That was awkward ._.**

**~Gella**


	23. Poisoned or Not?

"Sirius!" Lily called, running towards him with an evil grin on her face. "I've got a present for you!"

"Oh no," He muttered. "This isn't good."

"Here you go—" she skidded to a stop in front of him.

"Please don't kill me," He begged.

"—it's a Chocolate Frog," She finished. Sirius cracked one eye open, making sure that she wasn't holding a bomb in her hand. She wasn't. In Lily's open palm sat a normal-looking Chocolate Frog. Suspiciously, he reached out and took it, sniffing it gingerly.

"Thanks, I suppose," He said hesitantly. Lily smiled and took off again. Shrugging, Sirius bit off the head. Nothing happened. He shrugged again and ate the entire Frog. "Thanks," he yelled a second time.

* * *

><p>"Did he think that you did something to it?" James asked eagerly.<p>

"You bet he did," Lily winked.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This chapter was based on a real-life experience for me, though I didn't hand my friend a Chocolate Frog. It was his locker cup that I returned, after hoarding it for about a week and a half xD I'm sorry this chapter is so short; I have so many things to do recently T.T But your dares are coming up pretty soon, so bear with me!<strong>

**~Gella**


	24. Remus' Tale

I will never get over the feeling of transforming. Not the horrible contortions; not the sound of my bones and flesh remolding; not the_ pain _of it. Nothing.

Every full moon, I dread what will occur at midnight, when the moon is at its roundest, brightest, and its deadliest. Every time, I wake up in the morning and look at my hands, knowing that soon, in a couple of hours' time, they will no longer be thin, long, and human. Instead, they will end in long, hooked nails and would be covered in dark, coarse fur. Every time, I look at my eyes in the mirror, cherishing every last moment of when they're an ordinary brown, instead of the cruel, gleaming yellow ones of a lycanthrope. Every time, I value each minute of my day, wishing so badly that it would last, that perhaps this time, I would remain as Remus Lupin, and not turn into the terrible monster that was my doom. Every time, it happens anyway.

I would wait until my best friends were soundly sleeping, then get up and pull on an old coat and some jeans. With my heart in my throat, I'd creep out on silent feet, praying that no one would wake up and question me. No one went to the loo fully dressed after all. Noiselessly, I'd tiptoe down the staircase, and down to the common room, where Professor McGonagall would be waiting for me. Together, we'd walk out the portrait hole, out onto the moonlit grounds, where Madam Pomfrey would join us. Tacitly, with one of them on each side, we'd cross to the Whomping Willow, then make our way into the Shrieking Shack, where they'd leave me with a blanket and a few whispered, comforting words. The blanket would soon be shredded, but the words stay with me the entire night, keeping my human brain just barely there. It wasn't strong enough to take over the wolf's brain, but enough to confine me to the small room, and not attempt to go search for live victims. Instead, I scratch and claw and bite myself, leaving scars that I know will never heal. The wolf's instincts take over and I howl, long and high. If I were in human form, I'd be absolutely repulsed at just how _animal_ I was. I long for human flesh, to sink my sharp fangs into the warm, pulsing veins of a child, perhaps. I want others to feel my pain, to suffer what I suffer. It isn't fair that they get to have a perfect life while I bear this torture every month. In my fury, I spin in a circle and attack the walls. A hollow clanking noise echoes through the desolate building as the thin cot tips over, taking my sudden anger with it. Whimpering, I lie down and curl into a tight ball, wrapping my tail around me. I would then sleep until day comes, when I would be human once more.

The bright sunlight filters through a crack in the door and I sit up blearily. I look at my hands just to make sure. They were now hairless and weak, so unlike the powerful claws of the wolf. I breathe a sigh of relief and hastily pull on my clothes—thank Merlin I had the foresight to shrug out of them before the transformation. Soon, McGonagall would come, calling through the door first to confirm that I was indeed human. Reassured, she would come in, though her eyes would still be wary. I turn away; I have seen that look once too many. It's the look that people give me when finding out about my condition. I just hope with all my heart that James, Sirius, and Peter would never have to give me that look.

We walk back to the castle using a secret passageway leading from the Shack and silently congratulate myself. I had made it through. And I won't have to worry about this for an entire month. Smiling a bit, I thank McGonagall and head back to my dormitory, mentally rejoicing at the sudden lack of weight on my shoulders.

But beneath the bliss, I knew it would come again, next full moon. Because I, Remus John Lupin, will never be free of the burden. Never. It will always find a way to come back and haunt me. It is my constant companion, my misery. Because I, Remus John Lupin, am a monster. A monster reborn every full moon; a monster that wouldn't hesitate to contaminate an innocent child; a monster that would, in a murderous rage, blindly attack his dearest of friends. I am a monster.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, there's potato unicorn's dare. Not sure it's what you wanted; I just wrote another angst-filled chapter to avoid spontaneous combustion. But if this isn't what you had in mind, like say you wanted a fun one, like Remus reprimanding Sirius and James to do their homework, then I can write another one for ya :D BTW, for This Means War! Part II the last prank had something to do with a certain old wizard doing either the shuffle or jazz steps clad in neon yellow boxers with polka dots and something else on it. Check what I wrote after Marlene ran down the stairs screaming bloody murder ;P Also, Pelahnar, they are indeed random oneshots, I call them drabbles :D So so so so so so sorry for not updating yesterday! I got a guitar, then looked up like a million tutorials online and sort of forgot about updating…^^'<strong>

**~Gella**


	25. Gotcha!

"Hi," Lily said brightly, dropping her book bag onto the couch. James looked up from _Quidditch Through the Ages. _

"Hello," He replied, wondering what was Lily on about. She looked offended.

"What, I can't even greet my own boyfriend now?" She asked, crossing her arms. The words had their desired effect; James couldn't help but smile when she said 'boyfriend'.

"'Course you can, love," He said, setting down his battered book. "Anytime you want."

"I knew that," She settled on his lap. James couldn't believe his luck. They had only been going out for two weeks and already she was sitting on his lap!

"In a good mood, are we?" He asked, wrapping his arms around her waist. Lily turned to smile at him.

"I wanted to tell you something," She told him, tucking her hair behind her ears. James followed the movement with puppy-dog eyes.

"Yes, darling?" He asked distractedly. Lily smiled to herself; this was going perfectly.

"I'm going on a date with Sirius tomorrow, you know, when you have Quidditch practice," She spoke all those words in approximately five seconds then hopped off. "'Kay bye!"

James snapped out of his trance in a flash. "You're what?" He yelled, but the portrait hole was already swinging shut. Slumping against the cushions, he wondered how a perfect day had led into such a big mess.

* * *

><p>The next day, James dragged himself out of bed and onto the Quidditch pitch. To his surprise, Sirius was there, holding his Beaters' bat and his broom over his shoulder.<p>

"Hey James," His best friend called out. "You look terrible."

"Hello to you too," James grumbled. "You'd look terrible too if your girlfriend was cheating on your best mate, namely, _you._"

"First of all, I'm Sirius. I never look terrible," He grinned arrogantly. "And second of all—wait, what?"

"Lily told me she was going to Hogsmeade with you today," James glared, not buying the act. "As in a bloody _date._"

"What?" Sirius stared and dropped the heavy bat on his toe. "OUCH!"

"Serves you right," James said coldly.

"Have you gone mental, James?" Sirius gasped, his eyes watering. "Evans is up there!" he gestured to the top of the stands. Instinctively, James glanced up and sure enough, the bright red hair and sparkling green eyes—visible to him even at this distance—was present. She waved merrily to him and smirked, mouthing, "Gotcha."

"The world just hates me, doesn't it," James sighed.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: first of all, I want to say OH. MY. MERLIN. You guys have gotten me to a HUNDRED reviews! Congrats to Skaterofthebooks, my 100<strong>**th**** reviewer, who was also the first to review this story—you made other people notice this and got it where it is today :D Thank you all so, so, so, so much! I was literally squealing when this hit 100 and I couldn't have done it—derp—without everyone who reviewed and subscribed, and favorite-d. I don't know why I'm saying this because this is obviously all you guys' diligent work and I absolutely love every single one of you. I know it sounds stalkerish but I do. Secondly, I apologize for not having any shoutouts lately :( I've been way busier than I would have liked and most of your dares are coming pretty soon. Thanks again for being so patient and tolerant. You are awesome. I mean that. You, the person reading this boring AN is positively amazingly awesome.**

**~A very happy and squealing Gella **

**Note: I changed to title because I was sorting through some old fics that I've read and I came across one that was called The Best Years and I didn't want that author to think I ripped it off or anything so now this 102-review-fic is now called The Golden Age of the Marauders :)**


	26. Lily's Deep Affection

"Go away, Potter!" Lily screamed. "I DON'T BLOODY FANCY YOU!" James didn't move from his spot, but grinned even bigger.

"Ah, Evans," He ruffled his hair, while hooking his thumb into a loop on his jeans. "You're deceiving yourself; you're practically fainting right into my arms."

"Is that right?" Lily retorted. "The only I'll be fainting from anything soon is from your hideous face."

Loftily, James replied, "One of the first and foredose—"

Lily snorted. "You mean foremost?"

"—yes, that." James said impatiently then went on. "One of the first and _foremost_ signs of attraction is calling the other side ugly," he finished, smirking.

"Look, Potter. I don't know where you're getting this load of bull from, but it sure as hell isn't getting anywhere." Lily sighed.

"Oh, Lily," James threw up his hands. "Just admit you love me already!"

Lily seemed to be on the verge of throwing something at him, then she half-smiled. It was those early days of their rather rocky relationship, when James wouldn't duck for cover when that smile came on. No, instead, he smirked to himself: this was sort of working!

"Okay," Lily answered, still smiling. "Watch me."

James rubbed his palms in anticipation, wondering if she'd snog him. Lily strode up to him, peering into his face, and not for the first time, James marveled at the exact shade of green that were her eyes. That shade matched the emerald necklace she wore around her pale neck perfectly. She cocked her head and made a gesture as if to stroke his cheek; James almost whimpered in his eagerness. He closed his eyes, expecting to feel her warm touch, her soft hands in moment.

Well, he felt her touch all right. With a powerful whip of her arm, Lily slapped him across the face. Gasping, he opened his eyes and stumbled backwards, one hand covering his stinging cheek. Lily smiled again at him.

"There you go, Potter. Something to remember me by." With that she turned and rejoined her friends by the lake, accepting high-fives and mostly getting scolded for slapping one of the most desired boys throughout the whole school.

"What the—bloody hell—I don't—" James stuttered, stumbling confusedly back to where the Marauders sat, under the shade of the beech tree.

"Oh Prongs," Sirius chortled. "You just got slapped by Evans!"

"I told you not to mess with her, James," Remus shook his head.

"I'm scared of Lily now," Peter admitted.

"Yeah, mate. I don't think she really fancies you," Sirius added.

"You three are mental," James said angrily. "Obviously she was just hiding her deep affection for me!"

Sirius stood up and slapped James rather painfully on the other cheek. "Right."

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?" James yelled, cupping his red face in his hands.

"Showing my deep affection for you, of course," Sirius grinned.

James groaned.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: oh my Merlin, I've just hit another record. 11 reviews for the last chapter? All I can say is, WOW. Siriusly, wow. Thanks to all my reviewerssubscribers/fave-r's :D I know shoutouts are long overdue, so here they come!**

**Jacky Dupree: Sirius will be Sirius. That sums it up pretty well xD**

**Skaterofthebooks: you did. And you were :D and thank you yet again! Glad you liked that chapter.**

**PureAwesomeness13: thanks! And I did; the update's right about the AN. Teehee :P**

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: yeah, I didn't want to do too specific a title because a reader might jump to conclusions and the story might not be what they were expecting. There's drabbles in all seven years, maybe even beyond, so a vague title was my best bet. And, I've never asked about this, but why is your penname the way it is?**

**Pelahnar: why yes, yes you are. Extremely awesome :D James is sorta like a lovesick puppy; when it comes to Lily, he just drops everything he's doing at the moment, even his pranking skills.**

**Wingswordsandmetaphors: thanks :D **

**Midnightstar19: thank you! I really enjoy writing Lily because she has a pretty versatile personality, like one minute she's screaming her head off at James then by the next she's as sweet and innocent as anyone can be.**

**Potato unicorn: HAHAHAHAHA xD It sounds sexier? That has never occurred to me before xD How so?**

**Jayjaypottypot: hehe, shank you. I hope you're flabbergasted in a good way, not a "THESE ARE SO BLOODY TERRIBLE" way. That would be bad. **

**Lady Elizabeth of New York: Lady Elizabeth! 'Tis an honor, it is, to have someone like you review my fic! Lol, I pretty much sound like Tom when meeting Harry for the first time :3 Believe me, if I can shake your hand as many times as Diggle shook Harry's, I would. Anyways, thank you for the lovely compliment!**

**Lunalucy: thank you! I'll update soon as I can :)**

**Ah, it's that time of the year again, when all the teachers seem to be possessed by the Homework Monster or something. But no worries! I'll update whenever I can!**

**~Gella**


	27. Learning about Muggles Part I

"Why are you always reading?" James moaned as he saw Lily curled up on the couch, with a heavy book in her lap. She didn't even look up, engrossed in the thick volume.

"What is this, anyway?" James asked, plopping down next to her. She spared him one glance this time, then turned back to her book. "Charles Dickens?" he snickered at the name. Lily finally looked up entirely this time, and the look she gave him was not good.

"Sorry," He apologized quickly; he had only too much experience with that look. "Is it a Muggle book?"

"Yeah," She replied absentmindedly.

"What's it about?" James tried again. He will not suffer the indignity of losing his girlfriend to a bloody_ book,_ thank you very much.

"Something boring," She yawned. "I quote you."

James had to admit that she was right and changed the topic. "Muggles are interesting, aren't they?"

That earned him a sharp squint. "I can't decide if you're poking fun of me or if you're just poking fun at Muggles in general."

"No really," James insisted. "I want to know more about them."

"Take Muggle Studies, then."

"Lily," He groaned. "Don't you love me?"

"Not at all."

"Whatever. Just teach me about Muggles."

"No."

"Please."

"I'm busy right now."

"Please?"

"Go ask Mary; she's Muggle-born too, you know."

"I might've considered that before she started going out with Remus," James muttered. "Now they're pretty much glued at the mouths."

"I don't need those candid details, James."

"Come on, Lils."

"No."

"I love you, Lily."

"Huzzah for me."

"Please?"

"Why?" She glared up at the ceiling.

"Because I want to know more about Muggles?" James ventured, unsure if she was asking him, or just bemoaning her life.

"Of all the times you could've asked, you choose now," She sighed.

"That's me, Mr. Perfect Timing," he grinned, hoping to win her over. The only thing that he won from that is another glare. "Lily," he whined.

"Go away, James."

"Please, Lily? I'll do the dishes, the laundry, the—"

"What are you talking about?" Lily interrupted.

"What—? Oh, you know. When we get married, I'll do the dishes and the laundry and take care of the kids and everything."

"James!" Lily shrieked. "We're not getting married!"

"Okay fine. What do you want me to do if you teach me about Muggles?"

"Let me think about it and I'll get back to you in a few years' time."

"All right," James agreed. "Now in the meantime, teach me about Muggles."

Lily sighed. "My life …"

"Has me in it," James grinned.

She nodded. " My point exactly."

_**Continued in Chapter 32**_


	28. The True Meaning of Halloween

Long ago today, on Halloween, two brave people sacrificed their lives for their son.

Long ago today, on Halloween, the Golden Trio fought their first battle together. That very first battle would save the Wizarding World one day.

Long ago today, on Halloween, the three best friends discovered writings in blood on the wall, and their least favorite cat Petrified.

Long ago today, on Halloween, the Goblet of Fire unwittingly made a decision that affected the rest of the Wizarding World and beyond.

Long ago today, on Halloween, the Trio sat together in a small, cramped tent in the countryside plotting ways to be rid of the most evil wizard the world has ever seen once and for all.

We've come far, Potterheads. Let us appreciate this day for Lily and James' sacrifice, for that dumb, blundering troll, for the blind choosing of the Goblet, and for the sheer strength of our young heroes.

Harry Potter may have ended, but its spirit will never be. May the Boy Who Lived live on, forever, in all our hearts. May this magnificent era never be gone, because Harry Potter will only truly be gone from this world, when none here are loyal to it. And may the magic that Joanne Kathleen Rowling created never ever stop.

Let's continue this the way we started it, Potterheads. Together!

* * *

><p><strong>AN: In honor of Halloween, I wrote this chapter. It's not really LilyJames, nor Marauder Era, but I thought I should do something in tribute. So I did this. Hope you all liked it. Don't worry, James is still going to learn about Muggles in the next chapter, I haven't forgotten about him xD Speaking of Halloween, was it just me, or were the neighbors really frugal this year? I mean, some people gave me toothbrushes and crayons o.o But that aside, I've got enough candy to last me approximately…five months now, if I can hold myself back and eat only two per day. I doubt I'll be sticking by that rule though. **

**Enjoy the remainder of your Halloween! **

**~Gella**


	29. Learning about Muggles Part II

Lily sighed and put on James' glasses. He had insisted that she wear them, as it makes her look more 'teacher-ish'. Personally, she thought it rather made her look like McGonagall. Lily did not want to end up looking like her one day. Yes, she's a brilliant witch and professor, but it wouldn't kill her to let her hair down once in a blue moon.

"All right, Ms. Evans, future Mrs. Potter," James joked. "Let's start the lesson!"

Lily gave him a scorching look, which did nothing but solidify her resemblance to the Transfiguration teacher. "Careful, Potter. In Muggle schools, teachers punish misbehaving children by rapping a ruler across their knuckles."

James gulped. "Yes, Lily—I mean, Ms. Evans, ma'am."

Lily smirked in a very un-McGonagall-ish way. "Today we shall begin by reciting our times tables. Potter, start."

James was bewildered. "Times tables?" He asked, squinting at her.

"Yes, times tables. You know, one times one is one, one times two is two, one times three is three—"

"OH! That times tables!" James grinned. "Sure thing, Ms. Evans."

Heaving a sigh, Lily turned to her 'paperwork'. "Keep on going and tell me when you're done."

"One times four is four—okay—one times five is five—Ms.—one times six is six—Evans!" James called. Sometimes he really_ could_ be adorable, Lily thought, smiling to herself. Now, paperwork.

* * *

><p>She was tediously copying down dates of goblin rebellions when a hoarse James interrupted her. "Oi Lil—I mean, Ms. Evans?"<p>

"Yes, Potter?" She asked without looking up.

"Can I take a break?" He asked weakly. "I'm losing my voice."

"How long has it been?" She glanced up at the clock and was shocked to see that twenty minutes had passed already.

"A lifetime," James whined. Lily gave him the teacher glare. "I mean, about twenty minutes."

"Why didn't you tell me you were done?" Lily demanded, setting down her quill.

"I'm not," He answered, puzzled. "I just want a break, and some water, is all."

"James, it doesn't take twenty minutes to recite the times tables," Lily sighed. "Tell me which one you're on."

"One times three hundred and ninety-four is three hundred and ninety-four," he answered promptly.

"What?" Lily dropped her quill.

"One times three hundred and ninety-four is three hundred and ninety-four," James repeated. "Just like how you did one times one is one and one times two is two and stuff."

"Wait," Lily said slowly. "You mean, you're up to three hundred and ninety-four?"

"Yeah," James beamed, expecting praise from his teacher. So he was very confused when Lily slapped her hand to her forehead, groaning. "What's wrong, Ms. Evans?"

"James," Lily moaned. "You're not supposed to do that!"

James' grin slid off his face. "What?"

"You're supposed to do it like this! After the one's comes the two's, after the two's comes the three's and after the three's comes four's, and so on!"

"Yeah, that's what I'm doing. As soon as I'm done with one times one thousand is one thousand, of course," He added, still baffled.

"Urgh," Lily groaned again. "Forget the times tables for now. We're going to do geography."

"I thought I was doing good on the times tables," James pouted.

"Shut it, Potter, unless you want your knuckles rapped," Lily snapped.

James shut up.

* * *

><p>"A map?" James asked when she conjured a world map in front of them. "I'm allergic to maps."<p>

"No you're not, James." Lily sighed.

"Yes I am," He said with a completely straight face. "Once I got near a map in my Dad's study, and I broke out in hives."

"You sure that's not because your dad has a bottle of self-activating Rash Cream underneath his desk?" Lily asked, bemused.

"How did you know that?" James asked accusingly.

"I've been to your house before, James"

"It was confidential!"

Lily snorted. "Confidential my arse, it was my idea for him to put it there in the first place! So you don't go snooping around in his office."

James tried to look offended. Lily raised an eyebrow and he sighed. "Fine, you're right." He muttered. "I'm still allergic to maps, though."

"Never mind. Let's move on to English, shall we?"

"English?" James interrupted. "As in the language we speak? Why would anyone need lessons on that?"

"No James," Lily snapped, irritated. "It's a subject that combines reading and writing. That's why it's called English!"

"It still doesn't make sense though," James argued. "Why can't they just call it Reading and Writing then?"

"I don't know!" Lily screeched, tearing at her hair. "Stop asking dumb questions!"

"I thought Muggles made up the saying 'there are no dumb questions,'" James remarked.

"Muggles did not. Merlin did."

"Really?" James widened his eyes and without his glasses he looked like an innocent five-year-old. A smirking, annoying five-year-old that was her boyfriend, that is. "Merlin, Merlin is pretty darn cool then!" he laughed at the repetition of his words.

Lily, needless to say, was not amused. "Potter, one more word from you and this deal is off."

"What about two words?" He grinned at her.

"Potter," Lily said through clenched teeth. "My patience is running thin."

James didn't seem to have heard her. "Wait, did Merlin really make up that saying?"

"James," Lily warned.

"Or did Muggles?" He asked.

"JAMES," Lily said again.

"Muggles made up that saying, didn't they," he pointed accusingly at her. "You lied to me!"

"James." Lily was breathing deeply in and out, and flexing her fingers as if longing to wrap them around his throat.

"How could you!" James wailed theatrically. "I thought you loved me!"

"That's it. I'm gone." Lily turned on her heel and stormed up to her dorm.

"Wait Lily!" James chased after her, flapping his arms frantically. "Don't go! I swear I'll be good! Please come back!"

His only response was the sound of a slammed door.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword's dare, about Lily teaching James about what Muggles learn in school. Anyone think there should be a Part III? They didn't really do much teaching in this chapter xD <strong>

**~Gella **


	30. She Loves You, James

"Mum," James hissed. "What're you doing here?"

Dorea Potter gazed lovingly down at her son. "I'm taking you home, of course! And of course Sirius is coming too, as well?"

"Yes, yes. And stop trying to kill me, will you?" James mumbled, wiggling out of his mother's tight embrace.

"Well, I'm sorry, dear. Next time I won't squeeze so hard," Dorea smiled despite James' behavior. _It's all part of the deal,_ she thought. _It comes with every adorable kid there is._

"Yeah, and try not to embarrass me to death either," James muttered, stalking away to a bemused Sirius, leaving his mother with his owl and trunk.

"We're going to do Side-Along Apparate," He explained to his best mate. "Dad usually has some Muggle cars from the Ministry, but apparently they're all out today."

"No problem," Sirius shrugged. "Let's go. No doubt your mother is worrying herself senseless as to where her precious Jamie-poo had gone," He added with the usual wicked sparkle in his dark eyes. James scowled.

"Look, Sirius. It's bad enough that I've got to get strangled by her in front of everyone from school, not to mention she sends me weekly owls about changing my underwear—"

Sirius clamped a hand over his mouth and hunched over. James scowled deeper and aimed a kick at his best friend.

"Mate," Sirius said when he came up for air. "That is honestly the funniest thing I've ever heard you say. Why didn't you tell us that she sent you owls about changing your knickers?"

"Because I knew you'd react like this," James sighed. "But really, I'm already losing street cred thanks to her, and I don't need you on my case as well."

"At least you've got a mother," Sirius glared at the ground. "My dear old mum won't give a damn if I got swallowed by the giant squid. She'd probably think it's a good riddance and throw a party," he added.

"A real charmer, then." James snorted. "But can't my mum at least save all the hugging and cooing and choking to death for when we get home? I can't afford to have Lily Evans see me—"

"Oh, so your reputation and Lily Evans is all that matters, is it?" Sirius' eyes flashed. "What about having parents that actually loves you? Someone who'll run ten miles to a sweets store just because you wanted some chocolate? What about having someone who doesn't treat you like dirt? What about someone who actually cares about you?"

"That's not what I meant—" James protested but Sirius cut him off.

"You don't know what it's like, James." He pointed a finger at his best friend's chest. "You've never received a Howler for being Sorted into Gryffindor, or have been dangled by your toes from the ceiling just because you gave a Muggle boy some of your jelly beans on the playground. You've never been beaten for sneaking some gingerbread cookies on Christmas Eve. You've never had your birthdays ignored before. You've never been casted aside, unwanted in a corner while your perfect, younger brother gets all the attention. You take your mother's love for granted, James. But what about the kids that's never had a proper family before? Someone who's never known the warm hug of their parents, someone whose been brainwashed to hate Muggles and all Muggleborns? Someone…someone like me," Sirius' voice cracked at the end.

James stood, stunned. It's true_, he realized. I'm lucky to have a mother and a father who loves me for who I am. _"I'm sorry," He said softly, laying a hand on Sirius' shoulder. "I never knew you had to go through all that."

Sirius turned his face away. "'S all right," He replied huskily. "Your mum's like a mother to me. My first mother, mind," He added. "But, mate, remember that she only does that because she loves you."

"I know now," James smiled. "Now, let's go before my mum gets too worried about her precious Jamie-poo." Sirius smirked at him and they headed for the barrier.

"Say, Sirius," James began thoughtfully. "How long have you wanted to say all that to me?"

Sirius grinned. "Since the day I met you. I knew, even then, that you were a spoiled little berk."

"Fair enough," James grinned too and arm in arm, the two boys headed for the barrier.

Before they grasped Dorea's arms for the Apparation, however, James let go of Sirius and wrapped his arms around his mother. He could feel the surprise radiating from both his best friend and his mother, but also a warm, pleasant feeling from his mum and a strong wave of different emotions from Sirius.

"I love you, Mum," He whispered into her shoulder. "For everything."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I have a friend, whose mom really loves her and once drove to school at seven in the morning just because that friend—let's call her Mary Sue—forgot her hat for Hat Day. Spoiled much? Today, I got a ride home with Mary Sue and she and her mom were arguing in the front row as usual, about something completely stupid, I forget what. But prior to that, her mom called our names and waved to us across the parking lot, and I waved back. Immediately Mary Sue yanked down my hand and hissed "Stop it!" I asked her why. She replied, "It's embarrassing!" When we got into the car, she turned to her mom and hissed, quite vehemently, "Don't ever yell my name or wave. It's so embarrassing!" Inside, I was criticizing the repetition of her words—but what can you expect from a girl like Mary Sue?—and rather shocked at her behavior. I mean, my parents have never picked me up from school before, because they were always at work. Her mom used to be a dentist and now stays home just to be able to pick her up after school. She tolerates anything Mary Sue does, but her unsatisfactory daughter would always pick out some type of faults. Siriusly? Not everyone has such a great mom, you know. I don't know why I'm even friends with her .<strong>

**Anyways, I just really needed to write that down after today's events. As for James learning about Muggles, I'm starting to fancy the idea of start a whole new story from it, and deleting my two previous chapters from this story. What do you guys think? Especially MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword, since it's your dare and all. The chapters in the story will be much longer, and Lily and James can actually try some chemistry experiments and stuff like that xD. Leave a review for your thoughts!**

**~Gella  
><strong>


	31. Who Loves Whom?

"I love you, Lily," James said as he entered the Heads common room.

"Love you too, James," Lily replied, her quill scratching across her parchment.

"I love you more," he contradicted.

"I love you the most." She countered, looking up from her homework. "And don't argue with that because we both know it's true."

"I won't," James smiled. "But I still say that I love you the most."

"Say what you want," She retorted, though holding in a laugh.

"I will. And I say that I'll always love you, forever and beyond."

"I know," Lily smiled. "I know."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: An extremely short, fluffy piece about their love, as you can probably see. I don't want a huge AN in contrast to the tiny chapter so I'll cut to the chase. Thanks to all my reviewerssubscribers/fave-r's! I've decided to do an entire story about Lily teaching James about Muggles, and that's probably going to come up….soon, depending on how busy I am. I'm halfway through ****The Son of Neptune****! Who's read it? What'd you think of it? And as always, leave a review!**

**~Gella**


	32. All is Fair in Love and War

"Hey Marlene," Lily greeted her best friend.

"Hey Lily," She replied.

"Hey, you two." Mary joined them.

Dorcas walked in through the portrait hole. "Hey, guys."

Alice sneaked up from behind her and lunged for her midsection, then stepped back in disappointment. "Darn, you're not ticklish."

"Hi to you too," Dorcas grumbled. "I'm bored. Anyone else bored?"

"I am," Lily stuck her hand in the air lazily.

"Me too," Mary yawned.

"Me three," Marlene put in, then laughed at her own joke. The others sat, stony-faced.

"That makes the five of us then," Alice summarized. The girls looked at each other.

"So what d'you wanna do?" Mary yawned again. Lily shrugged tiredly. Then her green eyes widened. She beamed at them.

"Oh no," Alice moaned. "I know that look."

"Yeah," Dorcas agreed. "Who's our victim this time?"

A huge, devilish smile lit up their redhead friend's face. She gestured silently with a small raise of her eyebrows. Four pairs of eyes followed her gaze and landed on a messy-haired, bespectacled boy, frowning at his Charms homework. Occasionally, a small golden ball would zoom out from under the table then he'd deftly grab it, glancing around furtively. The girls turned back to Lily with identical grins on their faces.

"What're you waiting for?" Lily commanded. "Let's get started!"

As the five girls passed him, James Potter looked up, his eyes automatically seeking out Lily, so blissfully ignorant of the doom that awaited him. The calm before a storm, they say. Well, unfortunately for him, there was no calm. Love always comes with a price, and this was James Potter's price for loving Lily Evans. All is fair in love and war, and this, my friends, is a bit of both.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Ooh, lookie there! What's this! Can't be shoutouts, can they? xD<strong>

**Jacky Dupree: Sure :D And this time I'll make sure it's not angst-filled. I've written quite frankly too much of those.**

**Jaisler: Yes, sometimes fluff is good :D**

**Skaterofthebooks: yeah…I don't really like writing fluff. It's much too…I don't know, fluffy, for me. Then again, I've always been weird.**

**Midnightstar19: I finished it last night :) Don't you just hate the ending? I mean, siriusly. No one ends epic books that way -_-**

**PureAwesomeness13: Hmm…are you a fluff lover? **

**Pelahnar: Don't worry, I will. Sigh. Fluff, fluff, and more fluff. Mix and stir. Tons of reviews guaranteed. Not that I'm complaining, but it's so cliché. **

**MarisaCan'tRememberHerPassword: I feel your pain. My friends, ah, don't read at the same pace as I, and sometimes it's very frustrating. What's more, they refuse to love Harry Potter like I do D:**

**Potato unicorn: Haha, okay xD hope you like them.**

**Anonymous: thanks! And I will :D**

**Fluff, anybody? :3**

**~Gella**


	33. Remus, Sirius, and a Book

Remus was quietly reading by the blazing fireplace. It was one of those rare days that all the Marauders were separated and spread out through the castle and the grounds. James was in detention, his third one this week; Peter was being tutored by some seventh years, and Sirius was off being Sirius. He sighed contentedly to himself; no one can disturb his peace now.

But alas, irony is a curious thing. No sooner had that thought left his mind, than the portrait hole swung open, revealing the swaggering figure of Sirius Black.

"Hey, Moony," He plopped down next to his friend. Remus sighed again, this time not so contentedly.

"What do you want, Sirius?" He asked, shutting his eyes briefly. Sirius didn't answer, but instead appeared to be intently examining the book title.

"You don't sound very happy to see me," Sirius remarked, his eyes never leaving the cover.

"I'm not," Remus replied.

"I see. And you would rather be reading than have an entirely pointless conversation with me, yes?"

"For once in your life, Sirius, you're talking sense."

"Ah. Books are precious to you, are they not?" Remus snorted at this, though whether from Sirius stating the obvious, or the way that he ended his sentence, he did not know. Probably both. Yes, most likely both, he decided.

"And what would you do," He continued. "If I were to take this—" he jerked it out of Remus' grasp. "—and throw it into the fireplace?"

Remus jumped up. "You wouldn't dare, Black."

"Wouldn't I?" Sirius taunted, holding the book just out of reach. "You're sure?"

"Sirius, stop messing around," Remus scowled; perhaps his friend had a little too much firewhiskey tonight.

"If you want your dear old book back, Remmy, you'll have to come and get it!" Sirius called behind his shoulder, taking off. Remus exhaled and massaged his temples; sometimes he wondered if it was worth it to be a Marauder. Well, no time to ponder that now. He's got a book to save.

That night, the inhabitants of the Gryffindor Tower enjoyed an impressive display of physical exertion from Remus Lupin, the quietest and as far as they were concerned, the weakest Marauder (many people often forget that there were four of them, not three, you see, so Remus is dubbed the weak one instead of Peter).

"Sirius," He panted, clutching a stitch in his side—he'd been chasing Sirius around the Tower for the past ten minutes. "Just give it back."

"Oh, Moons!" Sirius laughed loudly. "Watching you run around like a buffoon is rather amusing. Let me have my fun first, shall we?"

"Sirius Black," Remus warned, his breath coming in short gasps. "I will hex you."

"Ooh, that got me quaking in my boots," Sirius shuddered mockingly.

"And I also have the power to give you detention,"

"I honestly don't care anymore, Remus, and you should know that." Sirius shrugged. "Now come on! Our audience is getting bored!"

With that, he ran off again. Remus clapped a hand to his forehead. Fine. If he couldn't win with brawn, he'll win with brains.

"Sirius," He called weakly, making his voice despairing. "I give up."

Sirius paused and looked back. "What?"

"I said, I give up." Remus slumped his shoulders, seemingly defeated.

"Aw, come on, Remus!" Sirius whined.

"Come on, Sirius!" Remus matched his whine. "I don't wanna play this anymore."

Sirius pouted; it wasn't fun when people didn't want to play with him. And he couldn't exactly force them to, either. "Fine," he sighed. "You don't have to play this anymore."

Remus brightened. "Really?"

"But," he continued. "I get to keep the book." Remus groaned.

"Whatever," Remus sighed. Sirius shook his head sadly: he didn't get the reaction he wanted, but he can't let Remus know that.

"Looks like I win, then," He said smugly, waving the book at his friend.

"Yep," Remus agreed. He moved forward, hand outstretched. "Good game, Sirius."

Sirius snorted. "This isn't chess, Moony. But whatever. Everyone knows I've got good sportsmanship. But I still won," He couldn't help but add.

Remus smiled secretly. At the last moment he turned the handshake into a quick, lunging motion, stealing his book back.

Using the hard spine, he cracked Sirius over the head. "Nope. I win," Remus smirked, leaving Sirius behind to crumple into a heap and moan in pain.

"That felt really good," He said to himself. "I should do it more often."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry folks, no part two for my last chapter. It's one of those times when you have to use your imagination to create your own version of what Lily was going to do to James. On the bright side, this is Jacky Dupree's idea. It isn't completely Remus, but hope you like it all the same :)<strong>

**The Muggle story is coming out…soon. That's all I can say about it. the first chapter may be a bit of a disappointment because I just merged the two chapters in this story together….so yeah. As for this particular story, I really don't know how long I'm going to make it. As long as I keep getting ideas, then…I'll carry on. If I run out of ideas for a while, then it's up to you guys to prompt me! But around chapter fifty or so I might take a small break and work on my other fics. I haven't updated them in a long time :/ **

**~Gella**


	34. Stay Straight!

"I need to prank someone," I announced. James hardly glanced up. Some things gets rather old after six years of hearing it repeated almost every single day. "James. I said, I need to prank someone." I repeated

"Good for you." James looked up this time, bemused. "And why didn't you just go do it, instead of interrupting my train of thought?"

I snorted. "You're thinking about Evans, mate."

James started. "How did you know?"

"You've got that lovesick, disgusting smile on—" I ducked as James' quill came sailing toward my head, then continued like nothing had happened. "And your eyes get all dreamy and stuff. It's pathetic, really."

"I get the point, "James snapped. "Now go prank someone and leave me alone."

"I want you to see this, mate," I told him before leaving. James muttered angrily under his breath, but I knew he was watching. Striding up to Remus, who was harmlessly reading, per usual, I placed my face right next to his and tapped him on the shoulder. Remus glanced at me for a second and went back to reading again. I heard James sigh behind me; evidently he thought I was only trying to scare Remus. Please. I'm _Sirius-freakin'-Black_ and I can do much better than just trying to scare someone. Not let down by Remus' initial reaction, I tapped his shoulder again. He turned to me and let out a big gust of air. Is it possible to sigh with exasperation? Because that's what he did.

"What. Do. You. Want." His teeth were so clenched that it a wonder words managed to escape at all.

I gazed at him seriously and reached out a hand to stroke his cheek. Remus glanced down suspiciously at my hand, then up at me, then scooted a few paces away. I moved with him, on all fours so I could look straight into Remus' eyes.

"Stay straight, Remus," I spoke in a tender voice. "For me," Wagging my eyebrows, I stroked his cheek again. Then I leaned in, as if about to give him a kiss. Thankfully, Remus had the good since to scoop up his book and race for the dormitory. I dusted off the seat of my trousers and went back to James, grinning.

"Yeah?" I asked lightly, tipping an almost-empty bottle of firewhiskey into my mouth.

"No. Never again." James managed to get out before racing to the dorm as well, looking green in the face. A few moments later, distinct sound of two stomachs emptying their contents could be heard. Sighing happily, I tipped back in my chair. But before I had time to relish in my accomplishment, an—well, _angry_ is much too genteel a word to describe the screech of Marlene McKinnon:

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK!"

Bloody hell.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hehehe, this was based on an inside joke with me and my friends, something involving having a bit too much fun on Halloween, some child molesters, and lots of hairy eyebrows. You don't want to know the details xD Hope you liked it. as for why Marlene screamed at the end…well, how would you react if you discovered that your boyfriend was gay?<strong>

**~Gella**


	35. New Year's Party Part I

"Lily!" Marlene bounced excitedly. "C'mere!"

"What?" the redhead asked.

"We're—me and my parents—hosting a New Year's party! Can you come?"

"Umm….what day is it?" Lily asked.

Marlene stared at her. "Lily. A _New Year's_ party."

Sheepishly, Lily grinned. "Sorry, had a little brain freeze there."

"So can you come?"

"Sure. I'll owl my parents and ask them, but I'm pretty sure they'll agree. Not before the no-drinking-nor-sex speech, mind," She added, shuddering. "Who else is coming?"

"Dunno yet. I've asked Alice, Mary, Dorcas, Remus, Frank, Sirius, James, and Peter," she said, ticking off her fingers. "So pretty much everyone, if they can."

"Did you have to ask James?" She sighed. Marlene beamed at her.

"Absolutely. I simply can't bear to watch my best friend not have anyone to kiss when the clock strikes twelve, now, could I?"

"Marlene McKinnon, you'll be the death of me," Lily groaned.

"Ah, Lily, when you make me godmother to you and James' child, you'll be thanking me then," the blonde smirked, then dodged out of reach before Lily could throw something at her.

"Why do I even bother?" Lily muttered to herself as she trudged through the thick snow to the Owlery to send her parents a letter.

As she pulled out a quill and some parchment, she found herself smiling, strangely excited for her parents' reply.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: istolethecookie, this is your dare! Well, part of it. It's going to be continued in the next few chapters, as I don't have the stamina to sit still to write an really long chapter xD This is very likely to become another fluffy plot, so fluff lovers, this is my gift to you. Thank you, everyone for getting this story to TWO HUNDRED REVIEWS! That calls for celebration! So I'm going to write a drunken party story for the occasion :3 Cyber-cookie to potato unicorn for having impeccable timing and being my 200<strong>**th**** review. If you want to be a hundred-interval winner, keep on reviewing! God, I sound like one of those annoying ads. I'm shutting up now.**

**~Gella**


	36. New Year's Party Part II

_Tap, tap._

Lily looked up from her game of Gobstones with Alice and Mary, to see her screech owl, Tunia, perched outside on the windowsill, a lone, golden shape silhouetted against the white heaps of snow piled on the Head Tower.

"It must be your parents' reply," Alice observed, setting down her game piece. Dorcas popped her head up from beneath her heavy Transfiguration textbook and looked on interestedly as Lily opened the window and let the animal in. Untying the envelope attached to her scaly foreleg, Lily pulled an Owl Treat from a tin behind the fireplace and fed it to the grateful bird.

"Well?" Marlene pressed, unaware of the fact that she had a milk mustache from her hot chocolate. Lily held a giggle and opened the letter. Green eyes scanning the Muggle paper, she grimaced.

"Oh Merlin," She sighed.

"What? Can't you go?"

"Yes, yes, 'course I can,"

"Then why the 'Oh Merlin'?"

"Oh—great—here, just see it for yourself." Lily clapped a hand over her eyes and shoved the paper toward Marlene. The others crowded around her and read over her shoulder. The blonde's eyes widened as she found the part that caused Lily so much anguish.

"Oh Merlin," she breathed, handing the paper back.

Lily nodded grimly. "Looks like I was right about the 'no-drinking-nor-sex' speech."

"Don't worry," Alice spoke to the paper as though somehow Lily's parents could hear her. "A little snogging won't hurt your daughter."

"ALICE!" Lily shrieked. "I am _not_ going to snog anyone!"

"Oh, come on, Lils," Mary complained. "That's the whole point of New Year's!"

"I'm going to snog Sirius—" Marlene pointed out.

"'Course you are," Lily muttered.

"—and Mary's going to snog Remus—"

Mary spewed out her butterbeer and coughed, glaring murderously at Marlene.

"—and Alice's got Frank, and Dorcas—"

She hesitated as her blue eyes traveled to the tall tomboy. "And Dorcas is special," She managed. Dorcas grinned.

"Yes, I am," she said smugly. "That's why I'm asking your permission to bring a date to the party."

Now it was Marlene's turn to shriek. "A date?"

"That's what I just said, Mar," Dorcas rolled her eyes. "A date. As in, you know, a bloke that I call my boyfriend?"

"Why didn't you tell us? Oh this is wonderful! Finally, a boy fit enough to be the other half of Dorcas Meadowes!" Marlene gushed, practically squealing with delight.

"So…er, who is it?" Alice asked. "And how long have you been going out?"

It might've been Lily's imagination, but at Alice's question, the brunette's cheeks colored a little. "We're not—yet. I'm hoping that this party of yours might set things in motion."

"Of course it will!" Marlene positively swelled with happiness.

"For the second time, who is it?" Mary asked. _Yep, Dorcas definitely blushed this time,_ Lily thought.

"It's a—surprise," she said finally. "You'll see."

"Tell me," Marlene demanded. "Tell me now." Dorcas only shook her head.

"I'm going up to your dorm now, Lily," She scooped up her bag and almost ran out of there. Marlene huffed, crossing her arms. Then she brightened and turned to Lily, who groaned and mumbled something like 'I'd hope you'd forgotten about me'.

"So, what are you going to wear?" Marlene questioned, squinting at her friend with a critical eye. Lily started, evidently not expecting a question like that.

"Um, jeans and a coat?" she answered nervously.

"What?" Marlene asked incredulously. "You cannot be serious."

"No, I'm not your boyfriend, Marlene. I love you, but not like that," Lily joked. Marlene swatted that aside.

"My point is that you need to wear something fancy. Jeans and a jacket simply won't cut it, hun." Lily started to protest, but Marlene put a finger over her lips.

"No, no, no. No complaints from you, Miss Evans. We're going dress-shopping tomorrow and that is final."

Lily stopped struggling, her pupils dilating in horror. "You cannot be serious!"

"No, I'm Marlene. And Marlene will help you pick out a dress that is going to make James Potter drool."

* * *

><p>"Do we have to?" Lily asked again. Marlene turned to her, hands firmly on her hips.<p>

"We've been over this before, Lily. _Yes,_ we have to."

"Why?" she complained.

"Because. We are your best friends. And best friends don't let each other go to a party in old jeans and a sweater." Marlene crossed her arms.

"Best friends respect each other's wishes," Lily contradicted. "And I wish to attend a party in old jeans and a sweater."

"Too bad it's my party," Marlene told her smugly. "So what I say, you gotta do it."

"But—"

"Lily," Dorcas sighed. "Just get over it._ I'm _going to have to wear a dress. Does that make you feel better?"

Lily stared. "Wow, you lot are serious about this, aren't you."

Dorcas nodded grimly. "Too serious."

"We don't need two Sirius's, one is enough," Marlene grinned. Lily threw a pillow at her.

"So Lily," Dorcas continued. "Think about it. Your whining is actually quite unfair. If I have to wear a dress, then you have to wear a dress."

"Fine," Lily sighed. Marlene squealed with delight, then quickly quieted down from the look Lily gave her. "But nothing too— vibrant, and big, and—I dunno—just—just nothing too fancy."

"'Nothing too fancy'?" Marlene repeated. "But that's the whole point of dress-shopping."

"Too bad," Lily copied her earlier smug tone. "I'm compromising all my normal boundaries for you. The least you can do is pick a dress that I like."

"Fine," Marlene sighed as well, then added, "at least you're agreeing to wear a dress at all."

"And for that alone, you should be grateful," Lily finished for her.

* * *

><p>"I still don't get the point of this," I grumbled, brushing flecks of snow off of my favorite coat before they could melt. No one answered. I tried again. "I've already got a dress at home anyways. We don't need to waste more gold getting another one."<p>

Marlene stopped and turned to face me, wearing what she obviously thought was a stern face. Her cuddly lion earmuffs rather ruined the effect.

"Lily, please, don't insult our intelligence. Do you honestly expect us to believe that you just happened to have a dress sitting at home, gathering dust?" She questioned, adjusting her Gryffindor scarf. "In fact, you're just about the least likely person to ever have even touched a dress before."

"Hey!" Dorcas pouted. "What about me? I can tell you right now, that I've never worn a dress before. Well, maybe except that one time at my aunt's wedding. Merlin, that was terrible." She shuddered. I sighed; looks like there really is no way of getting out of this now.

"Let's just go," I tugged on Marlene and Dorcas' elbows. Mary and Alice followed, excitedly discussing what type of dresses they were going to buy.

"Have you thought about what you wanted yet, Lily?" Marlene asked.

"If I had my way, we wouldn't even be doing this right now." I grunted.

"I know," she sighed exasperatedly. "So have you?"

"A little bit," I admitted, ignoring the surprised, fake gasps from the other girls. "I'd like a neutral color."

"Oh." Marlene's face fell a little; obviously she didn't think much of neutral colors.

"And I don't want anything too overboard. That means no sparkles or anything like that."

"No one wants 'sparkles,'" She said loftily. "That's too cheap-looking. Oh no, Lily. If anything, you're getting diamonds."

I stared at her. "_Diamonds?_" I repeated, not believing my ears. She nodded to confirm. "For a New Year's Party?" she nodded again. "Blimey, Marlene. What are you, rich or something?"

"As a matter of fact, yes, I am, or should I say, the McKinnon family _is_ rather rich. That's why I'm paying for all our dresses."

"Hey!" Dorcas protested. "The Meadowes family isn't exactly down the loo, either!"

"I know that," Marlene told her. "But I want to. Christmas is a time for giving, isn't it?"

"You know what you could give me?" I retorted. "A free pass to not go to this party."

"Don't be a killjoy, Lily," Marlene rolled her eyes. "Now come on. We haven't got all day; all the good dresses will be taken then!"

"Good," I muttered under my breath. "I hope they are."

* * *

><p>"Guys!" Alice squealed, running towards us in the dress shop. "How about this one?" she held up a sheer dress that was probably only capable of hiding her underwear. I eyed it uncertainly.<p>

"I dunno, Al," I said.

"Yeah," Mary added. "We're going to a New Year's Party, not a strip club."

"Thanks for the support," she hung the dress back into the rack and started browsing for another one. Marlene turned to me, an overly-bright look on her face. I groaned.

"No need to sound too excited, Lily," she dragged me to the very back of the shop. "Rack shopping is for amateurs. Let's go."

"What torture are you putting me through next?" I asked nervously. She glared me. "Let me write my last will and testament, then I'll come."

She ignored me and my sarcastic comments, and turned to an attendant who was folding dresses on a table floating in air. "Hello," she called. The attendant glanced up. "My friend here needs a dress."

"I see," the attendant said in a bored voice, as if she dealt with stuff like this every day. Which, come to think of it, she probably _does_ do this every day. "And will it be for both of you?"

"Yeh—no, actually. Make it for all five of us." Marlene turned and called to our friends. Mary appeared almost immediately; Alice followed, clutching another dress (thankfully, it offered more coverage than the last one). Dorcas came last, stumbling through the racks. It was just so…weird, seeing my normally graceful and athletic friend trip over her own two feet like this._ Although_, I supposed, _this isn't exactly a Quidditch field. _

"Dress choices for all of us, please," Marlene told the stunned attendant. I'm guessing she's never had to provide such a large group of people with dresses before. Then all at once, her demeanor became much friendlier, and she hurried forward, extending her hand to all of us in turn.

"Hello, my name is Arielle," she said, smiling at us. "And I'll be your attendant for today. Obviously," she added, then winked and whispered, "standard procedure."

She turned and grabbed her wand and a set of keys from a drawer behind her then led us down to the basement. I wasn't sure what was down there, and what it had to do with dresses, but when Arielle flicked her wand and the lights all turned on, it wasn't what I'd expected.

Instead of a dingy, mildewed basement, as the façade suggested, it had thick carpeting, several large walk-in closets that served as dressing rooms, and huge racks laden with dresses. Mary and I stared, as did Dorcas. However, Alice and Marlene had obviously gone dress-shopping in the Wizarding World before, and without hesitation, rushed forward and started shifting through the dresses. Arielle glanced at the three of us, hanging back, and smiled knowingly.

"Muggle-borns?" she guessed. Mary and I nodded, but Dorcas stepped forward and said,

"I'm pureblood, but….I rather dislike dresses."

"Ah, I see. Come with me. I have a specific rack just for customers like you." Arielle hurried away to a dressing room on the far left side, and Dorcas glanced back at us uneasily.

"Go on," I mouthed to her. "Arielle doesn't bite." Then she shook her head violently and I understood: she wasn't afraid of our attendant, she was afraid of the dresses. Before I could dwell on that thought, Marlene ran toward me, holding something floaty in her arms.

"Lily!" she called.

"What?" I answered.

"I've found the perfect dress for you!"

"Bloody hell." _Let the torture begin!_


	37. New Year's Party Part III

Marlene's face was positively split in two. She wore a look of pure delight; it was as though I had given her permission to stuff me into all the dresses she wanted or something. _And if she's wearing that look,_ I thought,_ then whatever's about to happen isn't good._

"Tell me I'm a genius, Lily," Marlene bounced on the balls of her feet, hiding the dress behind her back. "Tell me I'm a genius and I'll show you the dress."

"Do I want to see the dress?" I mumbled. She nodded impatiently.

"Yes, yes! Of course you do! Just say, 'Marlene is a genius and the greatest friend in the entire world'."

Suspiciously, I repeated what she said. She squeezed her eyes shut and I thought she was about to pull the dress from behind her back when she suddenly broke down into theatrical tears. Well, there weren't any tears, but there was the ultra-melodramatic sobbing and sniffling that followed. I, for one, never knew what to do when someone around me starts to cry, and this scenario is not much different.

"Er…." I looked down at Marlene, who was now on her knees, but somehow still concealing the dress, bawling her lungs out. "Mar…?"

"Oh, Lily!" she cried, grasping the front of my jacket. "It's so beautiful!"

I let out a big gust of air. "That's what you're crying for?" I peeled her off and took a step back. "Just cut to the chase already!"

Marlene stopped sobbing all at once. "You don't like my acting?" she asked, pouting.

"You call that acting?" I snorted.

"Is it natural talent then?" Marlene asked. I gripped my head. She didn't seem to sense it, and babbled right on. "I know, I'm such a natural—"

"Let me see the damn dress already!" I lunged for it.

"YAH!" Marlene let out a strangled screech and rolled backwards, crushing the dress and the hangar beneath her back. A sickening crunch echoed through the underground chamber. Arielle came rushing out, with Dorcas following her, looking as if the sky was about to cave in.

"Are you all right?" Arielle helped Marlene up, then her eyes jumped to the bent hangar and the rumpled dress on the carpet. Her eyes bugged out; it was as if her own mother laid on the ground before her, instead of a—

"Marlene," I breathed. "_That's_ what you were going to show me?"

Wincing, she sat up, rubbing her spine. "Yes," she gave a smile glazed with pain. "Isn't it beautiful?"

I gaped at her, wondering if somehow the hangar was to blame for her psychotic behavior. _Beautiful_ was not a word I'd use to describe the dress. It was see-through, like the dress that Alice had fawned over before. It was frilly to the point that the skirt was almost horizontal. The collar (or lack thereof) hit the skin just below my bellybutton. And to top it off, the material was so thin that it looked as if it would crumble given the slightest of pressure. It made my eyes hurt just by looking at it; never mind that my best friend actually expected me to wear it!

"Marlene," my voice trembled. "What did I say about nothing fancy?"

"Aww, Lily!" her voice tilted up in the beginning of a whine, but Arielle cut her off with a murderous glint in her eyes.

"Never mind your personal affairs now! You've ruined a dress!" the attendant snarled, her face turning from sunny to stormy in the span of the five seconds that Marlene rolled over the dress.

"We'll pay for it!" Marlene squealed. I could see her trying not to scoot away from Arielle who towered above her, gripping the dress and hangar.

"That you will," she hissed. "And there's one more thing."

"What is it?" Marlene asked, rummaging in her purse and not looking up.

"In addition to the one-oh-five Galleons and thirty-two Sickles that you'll pay for this," Arielle said with a twisted, cunning face that I did not like, "I also request that all five of you GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE NOW!"

* * *

><p>"Great. Just great," Alice complained. "You just had to roll over that damn dress and hangar, didn't you, Marlene?"<p>

"I was just beginning to get over my fear of dresses, too," Dorcas sighed. "Then you went and showed the other side of dress attendants that put my fear right back."

Marlene spun around to face them. "Well, I am sorry! I was assisting Lily, and polishing my award-winning acting skills on the way."

"Assisting?" Lily muttered. "More like trying to murder my eyes—"

"Acting?" Mary put in. "I didn't know you could act!"

"Believe me, she can't—" Lily began to say, but Marlene's hand wrapped around her mouth, cutting her off.

"Would like to see my enviable talents?" Marlene asked Mary, struggling to keep Lily's mouth covered. "I could put on a little show when we get back—"

"Marlene," Dorcas interrupted, "let's just concentrate on finding another dress shop and get this hell of a nightmare over with."

"And please, instead of blabbing on and on about your so-called acting talents, actually try to help me," Lily added, wrenching free of her friend's grasp. "I need a dress if you want me to go to your party."

"Fine," Marlene sighed. "But what do you think of a play of a skit or—"

"Marlene!" Four girls yelled simultaneously. Marlene chuckled and linked arms with them, twirling merrily through the snow.

"Just joking, my loves. Let's go get some dresses, yeah?"

* * *

><p>"How about this one?" Marlene held up a bright yellow taffeta dress. Lily looked at it, brow furrowing. She liked the style: to her knees, and a thin, layered skirt, with a line of flowers running along the waist and straps, but the color was too…..spontaneous.<p>

"Not my color," she decided. Marlene shrugged and began hunting for another one. Lily exhaled and looked around her. They had managed to find another dress shop after being unceremoniously kicked out of the first one, and this time, Marlene, true to her word, was actually sincerely helping Lily. Dresses littered every square feet of the floor, results of over two hours of fruitless searching. Well, not exactly fruitless: Mary had found a dress. It was a knee-length, powdery-blue dress with one strap decorated with small, delicate blue flowers. She had exclaimed that it was 'love at first sight' and wouldn't hear of Marlene's advice—"Don't marry the first dress you see!"—and had immediately paid for it. Personally, Lily thought the dress suited her friend beautifully. The blue matched her twinkling eyes very well and her quietly elegant personality even better.

"Marlene," Lily called out hesitantly. The blonde poked her head through and peered at her over the top of a rack.

"Yeah?" she called back, absent-mindedly smoothing out a few wrinkles on another dress she held.

"Have you got time for your own dress?" Lily asked. "I mean, ever since we came here you've just been picking out dresses for me..."

"Don't worry about that, Lils." Marlene waved an airy hand. "I've got everything I need done and done."

"How?" Lily asked incredulously. "You've only been on this side of the room—" she gestured to where she was sitting, amidst tables of dresses with the sign 'Casual Partywear' hanging over it. "—and we both know you're not going to wear a 'casual' dress to the party."

Marlene's dark blue eyes sparkled. "That I'm not, dear Lilykins. But trust me when I say I've everything I'd need and want."

Lily shook her head. "You're incredible."

"Yes, I am," she best friend agreed. "How about this one?"

* * *

><p>Four hours, ten butterbeers, and fifty-seven dresses later, all of Lily's previous good grace was nearly gone.<p>

"Marlene," she threatened, "if you shove another green dress in my face again—"

"You know why I keep doing that?" Marlene sighed, handing her yet _another_ emerald-hued dress. "Because it looks good on you."

"Only that color looks good on me?" Lily demanded. "What about purple, or gold, or—or something! Anything but green!"

"Lily," Marlene lowered her voice and made for her to do the same. "I hate to say this, but your hair the issue here. I'd love to give you the choice of variety, but your hair just doesn't agree with me.

"Shopping for you is always ten times harder than shopping for anyone else," Marlene continued, looking worriedly at her friend. "Your hair color is beautiful and unique, but sometimes the red is just too bright to bode well with any other colors."

Lily sighed, rubbing her fatigued eyes. "Now you see why I hate shopping."

"Yeah," Marlene sighed too. "I do see why you hate shopping."

"But still!" Lily's head snapped up. "I know my hair color puts you in a hard spot here, but there's _got_ to be _some_ shade other than green that works with it."

Marlene put down her warm butterbeer and thought about it for a moment, her eyes shut. "So….we're thinking dark, natural colors,"

"Yes," Lily said cautiously.

"And nothing too flashy and bright,"

"Mm-hmm,"

"So that cuts out most colors of the rainbow," Marlene despaired. In her opinion, that was next to nothing to work with.

"Yeah, we already know I can't wear red, orange, yellow—and no green, absolutely no green at all—blue might be okay, and purple might work too."

"You're right," Marlene nodded. "And don't forget earthen tones as well: black, brown, silver, y'know. That lot."

"See? There are colors I can wear other than green!" Lily accused. Marlene smiled and stretched.

"See ya later, Lils," she said. "I've got a mission to accomplish."

"Oh, and Marlene?"

"Yeah?"

"No green."

"No green."


	38. New Year's Party Part IV

Lily gaped at Marlene, whose arms were draped with all types and colors of dresses.

"So?" Marlene dumped the contents of her right arm onto the bench in the dressing room and pushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. "These colors, they're all right, aren't they?"

"Blimey, Mar," Lily said weakly, feeling faint. "You weren't kidding when you said you had a mission to accomplish, were you?"

"Just be happy you didn't have to shift all those dresses," Marlene pulled her to her feet. "Get up and try them on!"

"All of these?" Lily stared at the mountain of fabric and sequins.

"If you didn't," Marlene told her, "then how would you know which on to buy?"

"I dunno, like, just randomly pick one?"

"You can't do that!" Marlene shrieked. "That's like, the taboo of dress-shopping!"

"Geez, calm down, Marlene," Lily eyed her friend nervously. "I never knew you were this serious about dresses. Don't make that pun," she warned before Marlene could say anything.

"Just get inside," Marlene shoved her friend into the dressing room and locked the door. "We'll find one for you, Lils, if it's the last thing I do."

"I sure hope it isn't," came Lily's muffled voice.

"Less talking, more dress-trying," Marlene commanded. Lily sighed and hesitantly pulled a dress off its hangar. It was a tiny black dress in the most literal sense: strapless and cut exactly three inches above mid-thigh. Without even holding it against her body, Lily gave it the honor of being the first dress to go into the 'Reject' pile.

She plunged her hand again into the fray and pulled up a royal purple one. This was a bit more conservative, but just a bit. It was floor-length, still strapless, and had the additional, unnecessary edition of a slit all the way up to _here. _Into the 'Reject' pile it went.

Heaving a sigh, Lily pulled a third out and was pleased to see that it had straps, it was knee-length, no slits, and dark blue. However, when she tried it on, she spotted an American flag and was puzzled until she realized she was that flag. Or, more accurately, her hair, skin, and the dress made up the 'flag'. Another dress found its doom in the 'Reject' pile.

At this point, Lily decided to give Marlene a few pointers. Pulling on her shirt, she glanced around for her friend. Seeing her golden blonde head nodding off of a couch arm, Lily hastened to put on her jeans as well.

"Marlene," she hissed, shaking her awake. "Wake up!"

"Hah-huh?" she mumbled, blinking. "Oh no! How long have I been asleep?"

"A few minutes at most," Lily assured her. "Right. I need to speak to you about the dresses."

"Have you found one that you liked?" Marlene asked eagerly, sitting up. Lily shook her head.

"Mar, our sense of style is a little far apart from each other…."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't like short and strapless dresses, Mar." Lily admitted in a rush. "And most of those dresses you picked out seemed to all have those two characteristics."

"Oh!" Marlene cried. "I'm so sorry, Lily! I didn't realize…oh Merlin, I'm so stupid."

"It's all right," Lily smiled.

"I'll get you some more—"

"No, you sit down and rest." Lily ordered. "You're practically asleep right now—" she paused and waited as Marlene sheepishly let out her yawn that she was holding in. "—and I don't want a useless sleepyhead as my dress specialist."

"Fine," Marlene sighed. "I worry about your taste in dresses though. What if you pick one like the one that McGonagall wears—"

"OI!"

"Joking!" Marlene laughed. "But I had to get you back for the 'useless sleepyhead' comment, didn't I?"

"I love you, Mar."

"Love you too, Lils."

* * *

><p>Two weeks before the big day, Lily had still not found a dress. "Two weeks," she said to herself. "Two weeks is enough time to find one measly dress, right?"<p>

"But Lily!" Marlene had protested. "That's hardly any time at all!"

"It'll be enough," she insisted. Marlene looked doubtful, but complied.

During their original shopping trip, Mary and Alice had gotten everything done. Feet-pinching, wobbly, sky-high stilettos? Check. Enough jewelry to make even the most magnanimous goblins jealous? Double check. Several pounds' worth of makeup that was sure to give Barbie a heart attack? Check plus! Only Dorcas and Lily were left without a dress, and both were fine with it. Marlene, on the other hand, wasn't nearly as okay with it.

"Two weeks," she kept moaning. "Two weeks!"

"Marlene," Dorcas imitated her moan. "Please just shut up!"

"You two need a dress!"

"Yeah, I think we've settled that…."

"You simply just can't find a good dress in two weeks!"

"Marlene," Lily said firmly. "We'll find a dress for ourselves. Don't worry about it."

"You promise?" Marlene looked wide-eyed at her. "You promise you will? And shoes and jewelry and everything?"

"I promise," Lily sighed, wondering exactly what she had gotten herself into.

* * *

><p>A week to go and Lily was still dress-less. Needless to say, Marlene was going crazy.<p>

"Lily!" she raved. "You have to get a dress now!"

"Like, right now?" she pouted. "Too bad. This seat is rather comfortable, you see."

"You know what I mean!"

"Marlene, please calm down," Lily sighed. "Today's the first day of break. Let's worry about this….say, tomorrow, yeah?"

"Fine," Marlene muttered. "You'd better worry about it tomorrow or else."

"I will," Lily rolled her eyes, already plotting another excuse to evade the inevitable.

* * *

><p>And evade she did, though with a little help from Sirius.<p>

"Oi, Black," she hissed at him at breakfast.

"What?" he paused from his rigorous morning ritual of shoveling prodigious amounts of bacon down his esophagus.

"Keep your girlfriend busy for the rest of the day for me."

"Why?"

"I'll give you a Chocolate Frog," she coaxed. Sirius considered this for a second, then shrugged. He liked 'keeping Marlene busy', and he liked Chocolate Frogs even better. This seemed like a good deal. Lily smiled to herself. Then she began to think about the next day.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Lily," Marlene walked up to her. "Sorry I couldn't go yesterday. Sirius had a little present for me," she giggled. Lily smiled widely.<p>

"Oh, that's quite all right!" she replied. "There's always tomorrow, right?"

"Definitely," Marlene agreed. "Well, see you tomorrow!"

"You won't be seeing any of me tomorrow," Lily murmured when she was out of earshot. "If I had my way, that is. And I'm pretty sure that I will."

* * *

><p>Marlene hummed to herself as she headed for the Head dorms, looking for Lily. She gave the password to the portrait of a fat pony with an even fatter knight and stepped inside. What she saw was something that all of them had wished for, for seven years straight. Lily and James were wedged together in the same armchair, snogging each other's faces off. Her jaw fell open and she just stared at the two for a couple of seconds. Then, coming to her senses, she started backing out, quietly as possible. <em>I've waited so long for this,<em> she thought gleefully to herself, _and now it had finally come true!_

Lily waited until she heard the portrait hole snap closed behind Marlene and her footsteps fade away (it sounded as if Marlene was skipping). Then she released her Disillusion Charm and walked up to Mary and Remus, who were both blushing furiously, not looking at each other.

"I love you two so much," she handed them each a vial of potion. "Here, drink this; it'll help the Polyjuice Potion wear off faster."

"Couldn't you have used someone else?" Mary muttered. Lily grinned at her friend.

"You'll be thanking me one day," she told her. "And I think Remus rather enjoyed that…"

Remus made a strangled sound in his throat. Lily grinned bigger. "See? He loved it. Now, off you go. Thanks again!" she called after the two of them, who both ran off in opposite directions of each other. She chuckled to herself; that was actually quite fun. She had managed to put off dress-shopping for another day, and that was a cause for celebration. She glanced towards the mountain of homework that her teachers had passed out before break; she could always do it tomorrow. Today was a day of rest.


	39. New Year's Party Part V

"Listen up, Lily," Marlene marched into the Head Dorm, then stopped. "What are you _doing_?"

Lily was sitting amidst messy piles of books and notes, frantically scribbling on parchment. "Go away, Marlene," she muttered feverishly, not looking up.

"But what _are_ you doing?" Marlene asked again, her original goal forgotten.

"Can't you see?" Lily snapped. "What does it look like I'm doing?"

Marlene surveyed the disarray, her eyes widening. "You—you aren't doing homework, are you?"

"Marlene, if you've got something to say, do it fast. I haven't got time."

"But—but Lily! It's only the second day of break!" Marlene protested weakly. "We've got a whole two weeks to do this!"

"Drop it, Marlene," Lily tossed aside a scroll of parchment and without a pause began on another one. "I already skived off yesterday; I _have_ to do it today."

Her best friend's eyes bugged out. "You normally do it on the _first_ day of break?" she asked faintly.

"To get it over with, yes."

"Well, guess what. You're not doing that this year."

"What do you mean?" Lily glanced up suspiciously, then cursed as she blotted a spot on the parchment with her quill.

"I mean you're not doing all _this_—" Marlene gestured around the common room and the mess within it. "—today. Take it easy for the first few days, yeah?"

"Marlene," Lily sighed. "You don't get it! I have to do this today!"

"Oh?" Marlene copied her tone. "And why is that?"

"I've just got this problem—like, I have to do the work immediately, or I'll feel really terrible. I've had it since forever. That's why I never put off doing any type of homework." Lily let it out in a rush. "So, just let me finish—" she glanced over her shoulders and quickly counted the number of scrolls she had placed out. "—about six more essays then I'll do whatever you want me to."

"All right," Marlene gave in, slumping into an armchair that was not overladen with books and replacement quills. "Merlin, Lily, what am I going to do with you?"

* * *

><p><em>Three hours later….<em>

"All done!" Lily announced brightly. Her only response was a snore from where Marlene laid with a dictionary over her nose. She took inventory of all her essays and diagrams and whatnot and sank back into her armchair, stretching her arms and legs. Yawning and rubbing her nose, she got up and walked cautiously to Marlene's armchair-turned-cot. Poking her friend gently, Lily found that she was indeed out, and very deeply so. Carefully, she tiptoed out of the common room and headed down to the kitchens. Just because she was done with her homework didn't mean that she had to face dress-shopping, right?

* * *

><p>"LILY!" Marlene thundered.<p>

"Dammit," Lily muttered and tried to duck behind Alice and Frank, but Marlene grabbed her arm and tugged. "Yes, Mar?"

"I'm not going to let you get away from me anymore," she declared.

"What do you mean?" Lily gave Marlene the most wide-eyed, innocent look she could muster. Sadly, the blonde knew the redhead too well.

"You know damn well what I mean," she growled. "You are not going to get out of this one more time."

"Where're we going?" Lily asked, even though she knew what was coming next.

"We're going to go look for your dress," Marlene told her with a smile so poisoned and Lily wondered if the Sorting Hat should've placed her in Slytherin. Then, in slow motion, she saw her friend whip out her wand and with a horrible fascination, watched numbly as her mouth formed the spell:

"_Stupefy_!"

* * *

><p>Lily woke up with frills and lace surrounding her. A few feet away, Dorcas sat up, equally confused and disoriented. Marlene stood over them, flipping through a styles guide.<p>

"Merlin's underpants, Marlene!" Lily grumbled. "What the bloody hell was that for?"

"If I hadn't done that, you two would never get a dress, which means you won't be able to come to my party, which _means_—" she paused for effect. "—neither of you would be able to kiss the person that you _know_ you want to under the mistletoe."

"Aren't mistletoes for Christmas, not for New Year's?" Dorcas asked, rubbing a bruise on her head. "And I heard there's loads of Nargles in them."

"Looks like someone's spending a bit too much time with Xeno Lovegood," Lily joked. Her friend turned a little pink, but said nothing. Marlene huffed and tossed the booklet aside.

"Let's begin."

"The torture," Lily added under her breath. Unfortunately, Marlene heard her.

"Yes," she agreed. "Let's being the torture. And this time, I assure you, it will be doubly—no, triply torturous."

"Not very reassuring," Dorcas remarked.

"It wasn't supposed to be."

"Oh."

* * *

><p>"One more," Marlene coaxed. Lily gripped her head and squeezed her eyes shut.<p>

"No no no no no no no!" she moaned like a little child giving a temper tantrum. "No more damn dresses!"

"Come on," Marlene begged. "You're the only one without a dress now!"

"Dorcas had gone over to the other side as well, huh," she muttered.

"Why, yes, I have." Dorcas herself called over the stall door. "And I love it!"

"What's this world come to?" Lily wondered.

"Lily, please!"

"No, Marlene. I want to puke right now. I just can't."

"One more. I swear. That's it."

"No."

"Please, Lils! I'm doing this for your own good!"

"I'm glad you've got my best interests at heart, Mar, but you just don't understand. I can't stand all these dresses around me. Let me go today, please." Marlene looked doubtfully at her, and Lily pushed on. "I promised I'd find a dress some way or the other. And I don't break promises."

The two girls looked hard into each other's eyes. Dorcas' head swiveled from one to the other, waiting for one of them to snap. It never came. Marlene heaved a weary sigh, then nodded.

"I believe you. You can go now."

"Thanks, Mar," Lily said quietly. Then she was gone.

* * *

><p>"You handled that pretty well," Dorcas congratulated her friend. Marlene turned a tired eye on her.<p>

"I could've handled it better," she said sadly. "I didn't want it to end like this."

"You've done your best. And you know Lily. If she says she'll do something, then she'll do something. No need to worry about it too much," Dorcas reassured.

Marlene smiled a bit. "You think?"

"Yep, I do. Lily is going to get herself something a dress. Let's bet on that."

Marlene's smile grew. "You're on, mate."

* * *

><p>"What am I gonna do?" Lily berated herself. "I really should've thought this whole thing out before I walked out on Marlene."<p>

She calmed down—somewhat—and assessed her situation. There were two options: go back to Marlene and ask for her help again, or some other way, which were yet to be determined. The first option was too much for her pride. The second option wasn't exactly and option at all. But the first option shouldn't even _be_ an option; there was no way that Lily Evans was going to slink back with her tail tucked between her legs. That leaves the second option. Lily sighed. Things were looking _so_ good right now.

Sighing again, she thought back to her childhood days, racking her brain to think of something, anything, that had to do with dresses. She came up empty.

"Ugh!" she groaned and smacked herself on the forehead. "Think, Lily, think!"

And came up empty again.

"Mum used to make us dresses," she realized. "But I'd never wear them." A mental image of a huge, flannel-material tent-like dress popped into her mind. "Wonder why."

"Right, that's out. Um…what else…?"

Absentmindedly, she picked up her wand and twirled it around her fingers, while trying to sort through a jumble of early, blurry memories. "If I had a Pensieve, it would make this a whole lot easier." She murmured to herself. "I wonder if Dumbledore would let me borrow his," she mused, then quickly dismissed the idea. No need to drag the headmaster into this.

"DAMMIT!" she yelled as her hair caught fire from the sparks from the top of her wand. "_Aguamenti,_" and the fire was gone, leaving behind a vestige of charred hair. "Today really is my lucky day, huh?"

She dropped her wand on the bed and rubbed her eyes blearily. Need a dress, need a dress, need a dress, she chanted inside her head, as if somehow a dress would appear magically in front of her if she thought hard enough.

"Wait a second," she bolted upright. "_Magic! _I'm a witch! I can do magic!"

She picked up her wand again and looked at it with new eyes. "Well, it's worth a try," she said to herself. "Besides, they don't call me Lily Freakin' Evans for nothing."

* * *

><p>My initial determination has more or less disappeared over the next four hours that I spent on trying to magick myself a dress. Oh sure, at first I was brimming with confidence; they <em>didn't<em> call me Lily Freakin' Evans for nothing (actually, they don't call me that at all, whoever _they_ are). So I tried. Transfiguration was the obvious choice, so I started with that, despite the fact that I sucked at the subject.

"Come on now, Lily," I muttered to myself. "Deep breath. Now—!"

I snapped open my eyes and pointed my wand at the Gryffindor-colored pillowcase in front of me. "Dressius Changeous!" I shouted. "Dressius Changeous! Dressius Changeous! Dressius _bloody_ Changeous!"

Needless to say, then 'dressius' did not 'changeous' in the least bit. I glared at it, daring it to oppose the will of the mighty Lily Evans. Then I sighed. _What were you thinking? _I screamed to myself inside my head, _why do you always have to make things hard for yourself?_

I briefly considered the possibility of dress-shopping on my own, but abandoned it at once. If I couldn't cope with Marlene, Alice, Mary, and Dorcas at my side, what's the chance that I can, on my own? And I, Lily Evans, don't give up. So, back to the pillowcase it was. I've got a week and five days, and surely I could make something by then, right?

* * *

><p>Two days has passed, and the pillowcase stayed a pillowcase. I skipped lunch and dinner, looking up anything that could help her in the dusty old books at the very back of the library, searching for <em>something<em> that could change the damn thing to a suitable dress. And found none. So I got Professor Slughorn's signature and ventured into the Restricted Section, though my hopes were running thin. The only thing that I found remotely interesting was a dazzling, multicolored bug that was hiding within the thick volumes that haven't been disturbed for decades. It became my new best friend for the next couple of days; I even brought it in a jar, up to my dorm for company. Meanwhile, I continued to search. And still, nothing. I was frustrated, and more than a little taken aback. This is the first time in history that the Hogwarts library had failed me, and in my most crucial moment of need too. I continued to scour the shelves, but really, deep down inside, I knew that I had no chance if I keep relying on books. So I got practical. Literally.

"Dammit!" I said angrily, sucking on the spot where the sharp needle had punctured my skin, _again._ When it became evident that I was not going to glean any useful information from my beloved books, I turned to the Muggle technique of sewing and stitching. And so far, it's not been much better than the previous attempt. I couldn't go five seconds without pricking myself, never mind make an entire dress! But I had to try. The laces and frills were cut off from my old dress robes, and they were rather mismatched, but hey, better than nothing. I was currently on the hemline, painstakingly stitching in tiny stitches. If I let my concentration waver for even the tiniest second—

"ARGH!" I yelled, dropping the entire project. I had pricked myself under the fingernails, and it was bleeding freely. Muttering curse words, I healed the wound and cleaned up the blood stains on the fabric. Glancing at the rather forlorn-looking room, I decided it was time for a break. I sank down on the bed and closed my eyes. This is where the bug came in.

"You know, it must be nice to be a bug," I remarked to Peggy, which is what I had named it. "No worries, no cares, no hopeless issues of making a dress from scratch. But then again, it'd be sort of boring, innit? Stuck in the same jar for days, weeks….oh wait! I should open the jar and let you roam free, right?"

A part of my thought that I should be feeling stupid, being compassionate to a bug and all, but you know, I couldn't really care less right now.

"But you gotta promise to not fly away, or scuttle, or however is it that you travel. I need someone to complain too," I begged. Peggy showed no signs of understanding, only nibbling away at a leaf I had put inside of the jar. Sighing, I heaved myself off my pillows and unscrewed the lid. In a flash, Peggy escaped from its confinement, a colorful flash against the white backdrop of the ceiling. My heart was in my throat as Peggy zoomed towards the door, but settled back into my chest when she landed daintily again, on the windowsill, surveying me with huge, buggy eyes. I breathed a sigh of relief and reclined back again.

"Anyway, I don't even know what color dress I want yet," I continued. "I mean, it's doubtful that I can even make it, but if I do, I'll want…..I dunno, I'm not great with colors. Definitely not red, that'll make my skin look like milk gone bad. Not blue either, makes me look like a living flag. What were the colors that Marlene and I discussed? Oh yeah, earth tones, wasn't it? And neutral colors." I nodded to myself; this was actually going somewhere. "I don't really like brown, and gold, well, I suppose it's all right, but it makes me feel like a Golden Snitch. And that reminds me of Potter." I made a face. "Black is good, though it's a New Year's Party, not a funeral. White is also an option, I suppose…."

Peggy flicked a wing, and the sun caught the metallic brilliance, reflecting a crisp, bright green. "Are you trying to tell me that I should wear green?" Another flick. "Well, as much as I love you, Peg, I am not going to wear green. I already told Marlene that." I picked at a loose thread on my sheet. "So, back to the topic of dresses. Brown is out, black is out, green wasn't a choice to begin with. White is the only one left." I sighed again. "And I have to actually finish the dress first…."

The next morning, Peggy was gone. My one confidant, never mind that it was an insect, was gone. I slumped back into an armchair, then sprang up again. No time to feel sorry for myself; I need to get up and work on the damn dress. What a life I've got.

I had actually managed to finish stitching the dress's hem! Pleased with my accomplishment, I went down to the kitchens for a late breakfast. After returning, I moved onto sewing on the decoration, or whatever people call the flowers on a dress, and found out, to my dismay, that it was a lot harder than just stitching in a straight line. Ten minutes, a lot of swearing, and even more stinging pricks later, I gave up.

"Why?" I moaned. "Why me?"

Of course, I hadn't really expected a response, but right then, an owl appeared at my window. _Peck, peck,_ went the beak. Curious, I got up and opened the window, accepting the small package it held in its claws. It didn't seem to belong to anyone I know, and upon closer inspection, it was a school owl, bearing the Hogwarts crest on the underside of its right wing. It flew away as soon as I'd relieve it of its burden, leaving me to wonder about the sender.

I tore open the thick brown paper, gazing thoughtfully after the owl, and my hands landed on the softest, smoothest thing ever.

My eyes widened, and I stared at it for a moment. Then, pulling on my boots, I raced down the staircase, out the portrait hole, into the Gryffindor common room.

"Marlene!"

She looked up from her….er, activities with Sirius, mouthing, "what?"

"I've found a dress."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hello there! We're almost at the party! And I apologize for putting this on temporary hiatus for the last week; I had to make up a lot of schoolwork. On a happier note, we've officially hit 300! Cookie again, to potato unicorn, for being my lucky 300<strong>**th**** reviewer. And cookies to all of you who guess Xeno Lovegood. I wonder how he and Dorcas would play out…..**

**By the way, I just updated my other L&J story, The Early Years, so if you want to check that out and maybe review, I would really appreciate it. **

**~Gella**


	40. New Year's Party Part VI

"'Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask it,'" I read and looked up, seeing my confusion mirrored in four other faces. "O…kay then."

"That's creepy," Mary shuddered. "Whoever sent that was watching you!"

"And they knew what color you wanted, too," Alice added. "I agree with Mary, that _is_ sort of scary."

"Never mind all that," Marlene said impatiently. "Lily, are you sure you're going to wear this dress to the party?"

"Yes," I answered. I had already tried it on twice, once by myself and once for my friends. It fit perfectly, almost as if it was _made_ for me. "Now, I guess you're going to force me into heels and kill my hair and clog my face with makeup."

"As for the heels and the hair, you wear what shoes you like," Marlene declared, surprising me. "And the hair….well, James _had_ subtly hinted that he likes it better down, so I guess that's settled. But you _are_ right about the makeup part, sorry," she added apologetically.

"I can't wear sneakers, can I?" I asked hopefully. One look from everybody answered that question. "Well, bust out the brushes and the pencils and the creams. I'm ready for the makeup."

"We're not doing that today, silly," Marlene laughed.

"No?" my spirits rose a meter.

"No," she confirmed. "I know exactly what to do with your face."

"You're being unusually nice," I remarked.

She glared at me. "Would you rather we experiment today?"

I shook my head hastily. "No, no! I'm fine with that. Have you got anything else planned for me?"

She studied my face for a second. "Well, that depends if you want anything. I mean, I've got some necklaces, earrings you can borrow, and shoes as well. So what do you want, Lils?"

"I really don't know," I confessed. Marlene shrugged.

"You can come to my house before the party and we can see what's best, yeah?"

"Thanks," I said gratefully.

"Speaking of that," Dorcas spoke up. "How're we getting to your house for the party?"

"I've arranged with Dumbledore," Marlene replied. "We're Flooing."

"Dorcas needs to tell her date where your house is," Alice teased. Dorcas glared at her.

"Yeah, just bring him along with us, Dor," Marlene said. "Unless you'd rather…?"

"No, he's already at his home," Dorcas grumbled. "I'll go get him before the party starts."

"All right then," Marlene said brightly. "Now, let's leave Lily alone and get to bed. It's pretty late. And tomorrow is Christmas," she added, "so be prepared to wake up at six o'clock sharp to open presents!"

"Bye, you guys!" I called after them as they descended down the staircase then closed the door. After carefully hanging the dress in my wardrobe, I turned to the tiny slip of paper that was hidden among its folds.

"'Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask it,'" I murmured it once to myself before setting it down on my bedside table and climbing into bed. "Whoever you are, thank you."

* * *

><p>Christmas was a quiet affair, and sooner than the girls knew it, it was the day of the party. That morning, they had Flooed to the McKinnon Manor and helped with the decorations and prepare the food. Then, after lunch, Lily asked to go back to her house for a jiffy.<p>

"I always spend New Year's with my parents," she explained, "and this is the first year I haven't gone home for break."

"You can go," Marlene said. "But maybe later. Right now, we need to discuss the shoe and jewelry matter."

"Good grief," Lily said exasperatedly. "And that would take up the entire afternoon?"

"Knowing Marlene, yes," Dorcas chimed in. Sighing in defeat, Lily agreed, and the girls trooped up to Marlene's spacious room, on the third floor.

"Blimey, this house is big," Mary breathed. Lily agreed with her; being Muggleborns, they had a right to be impressed. Dorcas, Alice, and Marlene, however, all shook their heads and rolled their eyes.

"Whoa, this room is really bright," Alice winced and squinted against the sharp rays of the three o'clock sun shining directly through the large glass windows. Marlene pulled a string, and a pair of satin curtains covered the windows, making everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

"Right," Marlene began pulling out shoe boxes from all over the room. Soon, there was a mass of twenty, thirty boxes in front of them. "Let's get to it then."

Alice found her shoes first: a pair of nude heels with rhinestones covering almost the entire thing, and looking elegantly so. Then Mary: a pair of white stilettos with light blue diamonds studded along the straps. It was a while before either Dorcas or Lily found a pair they liked, and most importantly, a pair that their feet can actually bear. Dorcas went with a pair similar to Mary's, but with a T-strap and a smaller heel. Lily settled with a nice pair of flats that matched her dress color. Delighted that she didn't have to wear heels, Lily almost seemed happy when Marlene fastened a pair of long and dangly diamond earrings onto her earlobes.

"Well, we're done with that," Marlene said, surveying her friends. "Now what?"

"Can we do the makeup later?" Lily asked. "I mean, I still have to get home and all…"

"Right! Er, the party starts at eight, and it's….five o'clock right now, and I need you back here by seven-fifteen, so you've got about two hours," Marlene shrugged. "Sure, you can go now. How're you getting there, though?"

Lily stopped. "I haven't thought about that…"

"Well, obviously Flooing is out of the question. Brooms, maybe?"

"No," she said immediately. "And in this weather?"

"You're right," Marlene sighed.

"So that leaves Apparating," Alice summarized. All four pairs of eyes turned to her.

"I did pass the test!" Lily defended herself. Dorcas sighed.

"You better not get yourself Splinched," she warned.

"What do you think I am, a giantess?" Lily rolled her eyes. "I can do it, don't worry."

"If you're sure then," Marlene looked uncertain. Lily tugged all of them downstairs and collected her coat. Kicking off the flats, she handed them to Marlene and pulled on her boots. She walked beyond the gate, where the Anti-Apparating Spell stopped, and turned on the spot.

"I'll be back soon!" she called, and with a loud crack in the falling snow, she was gone.

* * *

><p>Lily rematerialized outside the gates of McKinnon Manor at exactly seven-fourteen. As if they were waiting for her, the other four girls rushed out of the parlor and opened the door.<p>

"I'm jealous of your timing," Alice said as Lily shook snow from her hair and took off her boots. "I'm always either too early or too late."

"I had to go, or else I'd been suffocated to death by Tuney's fat hog of a boyfriend," she said grimly. "He dropped by just when I was finally getting more than two words out of my sister's mouth."

"Poor you," Mary said sympathetically.

"Oh come on," Dorcas argued. "It can't possibly be worse than Sirius and Marlene!"

Said Marlene glared at her friends as they roared in laughter. "You guys seem awfully free-spirited today," she remarked stiffly.

"It's New Year's! Who isn't?" Lily giggled. "All right, let's get upstairs and do whatever you want us to do next."

"We're decorating the cookies—"

"COOKIES!" The group of four trampled over Marlene in their mad quest for the legendary cookies made by Marlene's mum, Elysse.

"They aren't for you!" she grumbled. No one heard her, too busy squabbling over the only triple chocolate nutmeg cookie. Marlene straightened her bangs and sighed. "Damn my life."

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, the cookies were on the table, along with everything else, but the girls were in panic mode. Ten minutes, that's all Marlene had until the party began. She was stretched between hair stylist, fashion expert, <em>and<em> makeup artist. With a few minutes to go, she sent Lily—the last one, fortunately—out the room, looking stunning in her dress, shoes, earrings and minimal makeup.

"But what about yourself?" her best friend had asked.

"Me? I'll be fine," she reassured Lily, as much as herself. "You just get down to the party and make James Potter swoon."

True to her word, Marlene made it downstairs a few seconds before the clock rang eight times. Quickly, she ran through the list of things she had planned for tonight. Then, taking a deep breath, she walked the last few steps with newfound confidence, head held high. The party has begun!

* * *

><p><strong>AN: All right, the actual party will be the next chapter! I have <strong>_**got**_** to end it before Christmas, it's been forever. I'm thinking of combining some chapters so there won't be as many parts to it...that should be a little easier for other readers. I will be so relieved when this dare is over. Don't get me wrong, writing this was so much fun, but I think I've developed an even higher level of phobias for all things dress-related =_= Can't wait until I get back to writing normal drabbles! Oh, and can someone give me a prompt for a Christmas chapter/one-shot? Doesn't have to be Marauder Era, but give me the pairs you want me to use. If I've got enough time to write a halfway decent story about it, I'll post it. If not, then, well, there's always next year! **

**~Gella**


	41. New Year's Party Part VII

**AN: Yay! The last chapter! Thank God I'm done. Istolethecookie, this will be the first and last time I take a dare like this again, so you've the honor of being the first and last person I'm writing this for. I hope you're satisfied with how it turns out! I'm combing some chapters, so it would be seven parts instead of twelve. Also, I probably won't write a Christmas story this year, but dares are still welcome, as long as it's not something as long as this one. Merry Christmas, everyone!**

**~Gella**

* * *

><p>All of us were here. I smiled as I looked at my best friends. Alice, in her pink dress and heels, looked so sweet and innocent and angelic with her chin-length bob of cinnamon-colored hair. Calm, quiet Mary in her blue dress, nervously tugging on the end of her French braid, and leaning against the counter, her large blue eyes taking on a turquoise hue due to the shade of eyeshadow she was wearing. And Dorcas. Merlin, she surprised me. Clad in a bold, short, scarlet-colored dress, she was easily the most striking out of all of us. Her dark hair was put into wild waves and her face was clear of makeup. And she was leaning on the arm of Xenophilius Lovegood, who thankfully had forgone his…er, <em>interesting<em> fashion choice of radish necklaces and bright yellow robes, and instead wearing a pair of somewhat more demure robes of sky blue

"Lily!" I heard a voice call, and there was Marlene, striding up to us in dark blue platform pumps, her long blonde hair streaming behind her.

She was wearing a short, body-hugging dress of midnight blue, and her signature smoky look, making her deep blue eyes stand out ever more against the pale backdrop of her skin. The dress would've never worked on me, nor Alice, nor Mary, or Dorcas, but Marlene rocked it.

"Sirius is going to have a heart attack when he sees you," Dorcas remarked drily. Marlene turned to smile at her and Xeno.

"And Xeno here looks as if he's going to have one any second now," she offered her hand. "Marlene McKinnon, pleased to meet you."

He did not take the hand, but looked at her with a faraway look in his eyes. "Something's on your mind."

"Wha—?" Marlene's mouth hung open.

"Something's on your mind," he repeated. "But don't worry; it must be the Nargles. And the mistletoe doesn't help, you know."

Dorcas flushed and gripped Xeno's arm even tighter. "Sorry," she muttered to us.

"The hell is a Nargle?" Marlene mouthed. I shrugged. She turned and critically eyed the rest of us. "You guys all look so beautiful," she gushed. "Wait till the boys see you."

"If anyone's going to have a heart attack, it might as well as be Potter," I mumbled. "Imagine the look in his face when he sees me in a dress…!"

"It'll be one of pure smitten-ness and love, I'll bet," Mary teased. I gave her a sly look.

"Yes? If so, then Remus is going to look a hundred times more smitten than he will! And Frank," I said to a blushing Alice, "one lucky bloke, he is, to be kissing you under the mistletoe."

"And then there's you," Dorcas said cheekily. "Dressed in white, like the bride you will be one day."

"Long, thick red hair draped over your shoulders," Mary added.

"Amazing green eyes that will seriously stun James when he sees them," Alice put on.

"If I wanted a description of myself, I'd look in the mirror," I glowered at them.

"All right, enough," Marlene said tersely. "I can hear them coming now."

"If a boy tries anything funny with you," Dorcas whispered, "I'll come and knee them in the balls, yeah?"

"We know, Dor," everyone sighed. It the last few urgent words of advice that she always gave right before a party, and fortunately she's never had to do it before.

"All right, you guys go back to the kitchen, Lily and I will greet the guests." Marlene said, tugging me along with her, ignoring my spluttered protests.

"Why me?" I muttered, rubbing my wrists.

"Shut up!" she hissed at me, then opened the door precisely two seconds after the doorbell rang. And in piled the Marauders, all wearing ties loosely around their neck. At once, Marlene jumped into the arms of Sirius, leaving me alone to deal with the other three.

"Um, right," I led them towards the living room and the kitchen. "Er, help yourselves with the food and drinks—and I better go rescue Sirius from Marlene's clutches—I mean! I, erm, better go get those two as well."

Before I could hightail it out of there, however, a pair of hands caught my arm. I looked up, into the face of James Potter.

"Lily," he breathed. "Is that you?"

"No, it's Professor Dumbledore's childhood lover," I replied sarcastically. "'Course it's me, Potter. Who else has this godforsaken shade of red hair?"

"It's just—I've never seen you in a dress before," he said, still gazing into my face. I rolled my eyes.

"Now you see why, don't you? Now let me go before your best mate is strangled to death by mine."

"I'm coming with you," he said. "You look beautiful, by the way,"

"Save it for when you're drunk as hell," I yawned. "But if I may say so, you don't look half bad yourself."

He grinned, the corners of his mouth pricking upwards, forming dimples on one side. "Why thank you, Miss Evans, ma'am." He dipped his head in a mock bow.

"I said, save it for later," I repeated, but couldn't help but smile at his theatrics.

"Oh _GOD_," James gagged as Sirius and Marlene came into view. "Aren't you supposed to kiss at _midnight_?"

"Yeah," Sirius replied out of the corner of his mouth. "Your point, mate?"

"Never mind," James was a bit queasy-looking. I sighed and dragged him towards the main entrance to wait for more guests. It was a while before everyone arrived, some I've never even met before.

"What did she do, invite the entire Hogwarts population or something?" I commented to James as we took yet another coat.

"I'm cold," he complained.

"Deal with it," I snapped back. "I'm in a dress here."

"Oi! Lily! James!" We heard Marlene yell. "Everyone's here! You two can come in now!"

"Thank Merlin," I made a beeline for the nearest refreshments table, grabbing up a cup filled with warm liquid and drained it in one gulp. "Uh, Marlene?" I asked as the searing, bubbly liquid made its way down my throat. "This isn't butterbeer, is it?"

"It's firewhiskey!" she shouted over the noise and the music. I started.

"FIREWHISKEY?" I screamed. "THERE ARE PEOPLE UNDERAGE HERE!"

"That's why there's another table," James appeared by my side again, "right over there." He pointed to a spot where a few third-year wizards were crowded around. "But since you're of age, you're not going over there."

"Oh?" I asked, struggling through the thick wave of people. "And please enlighten me on why I should not."

"Because, Miss Evans, love, we're going to dance."

* * *

><p>Before she could protest, or hit me, or both, I whisked Lily onto the dance floor. Merlin, she was gorgeous. Her hair was down and flowing around her shoulders and her eyelashes fluttered softly as I gazed into her brilliant green eyes, the eyes that I love so much. When I told her she was beautiful, I really meant it, I mean, how could I not? The white dress she was wearing was strapless and simple, made of a light, fluid material that was almost seamless as it twirled around her body, as we danced.<p>

"I didn't know you could dance," she breathed in my ear. I chuckled.

"Trust me, I can't. I'm copying what everyone else is doing," I told her. At my words, she glanced around, seemingly surprised that there were other couples dancing as well. We whirled past Remus and Mary, who both looked as if they were in heaven, then Alice and Frank, who couldn't take their eyes off of each other, and Dorcas and…

"Bloody hell," I whispered. "Is that…Lovegood?"

"Unfortunately," she whispered back. "A strange bloke, that one."

"Still," I said, "they both look pretty happy together."

"I wonder where Marlene and Sirius are," she said, scanning the crowd.

"Probably in her bedroom," I rolled my eyes.

"Don't even mention that," she hissed. "Looks like Dorcas is finally going to get the chance to knee him in the balls now."

I laughed hesitantly, wondering whether she was joking. "Say, why didn't you wear a green dress? I would've expected you to, since it matches your eyes and all…."

She turned her face away and made a small noise. "I hate the color green."

Taken aback, I stopped moving. "Oh."

"You always gave me these ridiculous things for my birthday and Christmas, and it's always green. That's why I threw them away, you know. Not because I didn't like them."

"Oh."

"Is that all you can say?"

"I love you."

"Mm-hmm," she broke away. "I'm going to get more firewhiskey."

My eyebrows shot up. "You're not yourself today."

"We aren't at school," she countered. "Now, do you want firewhiskey or not?"

* * *

><p>"Lily," I heard James' concerned voice. "That's your fifth one. You shouldn't be drinking so much."<p>

"You're one to talk," I lifted yet another cup to my lips. "You and Black always drink a barrel apiece at every party we hold in the common room."

"Yeah, well, we're hardened men, we can take it." His hands covered mine, loosening my grip on the cup. "You on the other hand…"

"What about me?" I snapped and promptly tripped over a chair leg. James steadied me, pulling me over to a couch.

"You're drunk," he confirmed. "Now, lie down here while I go get you some water."

"Wait," I grabbed his arm. "I've my wand. _Agua—aguamenti_!"

A fountain of dark wine shot from my wand instead of the water I wanted. I heard James sigh and sheepishly settled my head on the couch, per his instructions. A few moments later, the cool brim of a water bottle was being pressed to my lips, and I gratefully sipped the water.

"What do you know," I slurred. "Lily Evans is drunk."

"Never thought I'd see the day," he agreed. "And I'm not even that drunk. Yet."

"My head hurts," I realized. "I think I might throw up."

"Breath through your mouth," he advised, conjuring up a bucket, "and hold this just in case."

I drew my knees up to my chest before remembering I was in a dress, and hastily crossed them. I saw James' eyes flick away in the other direction and I flushed, dropping my head and letting my hair cover my face. After a few minutes, the urge passed and I leaned back, still taking deep breaths.

"So this is how it feels to be drunk," I gasped for air. "To be honest, it's not that bad, if I've got you here with me."

"You're more drunk than I thought," he draped an arm around my shoulders and I could hear the smile in his voice. "Oh Merlin. Let's hope you forget this next morning."

"Don't try anything funny," I warned, but my voice sounded feeble and the effect was ruined. "Or I'm calling Dorcas over."

"Please, have a little faith in me. I want our first time to be when we're both Potters," he teased. I smiled a little.

"That doesn't sound too bad."

"Not at all," he agreed, pulling me closer. Through a hazy fog, I could hear a steady, excitement-fused chanting.

"What're they saying?" I asked curiously.

"It's the New Year's countdown," he told me, brow furrowed.

"Oh dear," I sighed. "Well, let's go find a mistletoe."

He stiffened, looking down at me. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine! Help me up," I extended a hand. Stumbling to my feet, I glanced around blearily. James, who was right next to me, seemed weak and fuzzy to my alcohol-poisoned eyes. I could just barely make up his tie and rumpled shirt. I pulled him to me by the tie, until we were mere centimeters apart.

"So this is it, huh?" he asked quietly. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," I smiled. "Let's just hope Dorcas doesn't see us."

The countdown was ticking closer and closer to New Year's, and the volume getting gradually louder and louder, until I thought my skull would burst. Taking comfort in James' presence, I calmed my racing heart and dared sneak a peek at his face. His hazel eyes were staring into my own with such a burning intensity, such a strong desire that I dropped my eyes immediately. Hesitantly, his arms wrapped around my waist just as the countdown ended. Our lips met, slowly at first, then grew. My arms found themselves around his neck and our hearts, minds, and bodies were melded as one. I heard cheering and clapping, and broke away, smiling. Then, still holding onto James, I threw up.

* * *

><p>"Oh Merlin!" I cried as James jumped out of the way. "I'm so sorry!"<p>

"It's all right," he grabbed some napkins off a nearby table. "Now you see why getting drunk isn't such a good idea after all."

"I'm so, so sorry," I apologized as I helped him clean up the mess. "I didn't want our first kiss to end like that."

"What about a second one, then?" he asked, abandoning the mess of napkins and vomit. "Just promise me you won't throw up in my mouth this time," he added jokingly. I smiled wanly.

"I'll try not to."

Thankfully, this kiss went much smoother, and I let out a tiny breath I'd been holding. "Now that's what I'm talking about," James whispered, lowering his lips onto mine again. Suddenly, I felt someone wrench us apart.

"What are you _doing_ to Lily?" Dorcas demanded angrily while Mary and Remus and Alice and Frank and Xeno looked on—Marlene and Sirius were both curiously missing.

"Wait, let me explain—!" James protested, but before he could, Dorcas' high-heeled foot connected with his crotch. He fell down, narrowly missing the mess, clutching his family treasures and howling in uncontrolled pain. Turning to me, Dorcas said,

"You look terrible, Lily. What _did_ he do to you?"

"Dorcas, you idiot!" I snapped. "He didn't do anything! And you just kicked my boyfriend!"

"Huh?" she stopped for a second and stared. "Wait—what?"

I knelt down by James' limp form. "Are you all right?"

"I knew—" he grimaced in pain. "—there was a reason why I picked you to be Keeper."

"Huh?" It was my turn to be confused, as I watched assailant and assailed high-five each other.

"But next time," James continued, "practice your kicks on a Quaffle, not your team captain's private parts, yeah?"

"Yeah, I'd not fancy having to explain to Lily why her future husband is infertile," Dorcas shot me a sly wink.

"OI!" I leapt up and fell down again. Dorcas danced out of my strangling reach. "Oh, damn all those firewhiskeys!"

"I disagree," James pulled me up into his arms. "If not for the firewhiskeys, none of this would've happened."

Then he kissed me, long and sweet.

"Watch it, Potter. I still haven't forgiven you for snogging Lily," Dorcas warned. "Do you want me to use my excellent Keeper kick on you again?"

He ignored her, taking my face in his hands. Then…

"That's for getting your hands all over my best friend," a smug Dorcas told a writhing James with tears leaking out of his eyes. "Oh Merlin, I can't wait until your wedding!"

_Fin._


	42. Chapter 46

**AN: Yay! The last chapter! Thank God I'm done. Istolethecookie, this will be the first and last time I take a dare like this again, so you've the honor of being the first and last person I'm writing this for. I hope you're satisfied with how it turns out! I'm combing some chapters, so it would be seven parts instead of twelve. Also, I probably won't write a Christmas story this year, but dares are still welcome, as long as it's not something as long as this one. Merry Christmas, everyone!**

**~Gella**

* * *

><p>All of us were here. I smiled as I looked at my best friends. Alice, in her pink dress and heels, looked so sweet and innocent and angelic with her chin-length bob of cinnamon-colored hair. Calm, quiet Mary in her blue dress, nervously tugging on the end of her French braid, and leaning against the counter, her large blue eyes taking on a turquoise hue due to the shade of eyeshadow she was wearing. And Dorcas. Merlin, she surprised me. Clad in a bold, short, scarlet-colored dress, she was easily the most striking out of all of us. Her dark hair was put into wild waves and her face was clear of makeup. And she was leaning on the arm of Xenophilius Lovegood, who thankfully had forgone his…er, <em>interesting<em> fashion choice of radish necklaces and bright yellow robes, and instead wearing a pair of somewhat more demure robes of sky blue

"Lily!" I heard a voice call, and there was Marlene, striding up to us in dark blue platform pumps, her long blonde hair streaming behind her.

She was wearing a short, body-hugging dress of midnight blue, and her signature smoky look, making her deep blue eyes stand out ever more against the pale backdrop of her skin. The dress would've never worked on me, nor Alice, nor Mary, or Dorcas, but Marlene rocked it.

"Sirius is going to have a heart attack when he sees you," Dorcas remarked drily. Marlene turned to smile at her and Xeno.

"And Xeno here looks as if he's going to have one any second now," she offered her hand. "Marlene McKinnon, pleased to meet you."

He did not take the hand, but looked at her with a faraway look in his eyes. "Something's on your mind."

"Wha—?" Marlene's mouth hung open.

"Something's on your mind," he repeated. "But don't worry; it must be the Nargles. And the mistletoe doesn't help, you know."

Dorcas flushed and gripped Xeno's arm even tighter. "Sorry," she muttered to us.

"The hell is a Nargle?" Marlene mouthed. I shrugged. She turned and critically eyed the rest of us. "You guys all look so beautiful," she gushed. "Wait till the boys see you."

"If anyone's going to have a heart attack, it might as well as be Potter," I mumbled. "Imagine the look in his face when he sees me in a dress…!"

"It'll be one of pure smitten-ness and love, I'll bet," Mary teased. I gave her a sly look.

"Yes? If so, then Remus is going to look a hundred times more smitten than he will! And Frank," I said to a blushing Alice, "one lucky bloke, he is, to be kissing you under the mistletoe."

"And then there's you," Dorcas said cheekily. "Dressed in white, like the bride you will be one day."

"Long, thick red hair draped over your shoulders," Mary added.

"Amazing green eyes that will seriously stun James when he sees them," Alice put on.

"If I wanted a description of myself, I'd look in the mirror," I glowered at them.

"All right, enough," Marlene said tersely. "I can hear them coming now."

"If a boy tries anything funny with you," Dorcas whispered, "I'll come and knee them in the balls, yeah?"

"We know, Dor," everyone sighed. It the last few urgent words of advice that she always gave right before a party, and fortunately she's never had to do it before.

"All right, you guys go back to the kitchen, Lily and I will greet the guests." Marlene said, tugging me along with her, ignoring my spluttered protests.

"Why me?" I muttered, rubbing my wrists.

"Shut up!" she hissed at me, then opened the door precisely two seconds after the doorbell rang. And in piled the Marauders, all wearing ties loosely around their neck. At once, Marlene jumped into the arms of Sirius, leaving me alone to deal with the other three.

"Um, right," I led them towards the living room and the kitchen. "Er, help yourselves with the food and drinks—and I better go rescue Sirius from Marlene's clutches—I mean! I, erm, better go get those two as well."

Before I could hightail it out of there, however, a pair of hands caught my arm. I looked up, into the face of James Potter.

"Lily," he breathed. "Is that you?"

"No, it's Professor Dumbledore's childhood lover," I replied sarcastically. "'Course it's me, Potter. Who else has this godforsaken shade of red hair?"

"It's just—I've never seen you in a dress before," he said, still gazing into my face. I rolled my eyes.

"Now you see why, don't you? Now let me go before your best mate is strangled to death by mine."

"I'm coming with you," he said. "You look beautiful, by the way,"

"Save it for when you're drunk as hell," I yawned. "But if I may say so, you don't look half bad yourself."

He grinned, the corners of his mouth pricking upwards, forming dimples on one side. "Why thank you, Miss Evans, ma'am." He dipped his head in a mock bow.

"I said, save it for later," I repeated, but couldn't help but smile at his theatrics.

"Oh _GOD_," James gagged as Sirius and Marlene came into view. "Aren't you supposed to kiss at _midnight_?"

"Yeah," Sirius replied out of the corner of his mouth. "Your point, mate?"

"Never mind," James was a bit queasy-looking. I sighed and dragged him towards the main entrance to wait for more guests. It was a while before everyone arrived, some I've never even met before.

"What did she do, invite the entire Hogwarts population or something?" I commented to James as we took yet another coat.

"I'm cold," he complained.

"Deal with it," I snapped back. "I'm in a dress here."

"Oi! Lily! James!" We heard Marlene yell. "Everyone's here! You two can come in now!"

"Thank Merlin," I made a beeline for the nearest refreshments table, grabbing up a cup filled with warm liquid and drained it in one gulp. "Uh, Marlene?" I asked as the searing, bubbly liquid made its way down my throat. "This isn't butterbeer, is it?"

"It's firewhiskey!" she shouted over the noise and the music. I started.

"FIREWHISKEY?" I screamed. "THERE ARE PEOPLE UNDERAGE HERE!"

"That's why there's another table," James appeared by my side again, "right over there." He pointed to a spot where a few third-year wizards were crowded around. "But since you're of age, you're not going over there."

"Oh?" I asked, struggling through the thick wave of people. "And please enlighten me on why I should not."

"Because, Miss Evans, love, we're going to dance."

* * *

><p>Before she could protest, or hit me, or both, I whisked Lily onto the dance floor. Merlin, she was gorgeous. Her hair was down and flowing around her shoulders and her eyelashes fluttered softly as I gazed into her brilliant green eyes, the eyes that I love so much. When I told her she was beautiful, I really meant it, I mean, how could I not? The white dress she was wearing was strapless and simple, made of a light, fluid material that was almost seamless as it twirled around her body, as we danced.<p>

"I didn't know you could dance," she breathed in my ear. I chuckled.

"Trust me, I can't. I'm copying what everyone else is doing," I told her. At my words, she glanced around, seemingly surprised that there were other couples dancing as well. We whirled past Remus and Mary, who both looked as if they were in heaven, then Alice and Frank, who couldn't take their eyes off of each other, and Dorcas and…

"Bloody hell," I whispered. "Is that…Lovegood?"

"Unfortunately," she whispered back. "A strange bloke, that one."

"Still," I said, "they both look pretty happy together."

"I wonder where Marlene and Sirius are," she said, scanning the crowd.

"Probably in her bedroom," I rolled my eyes.

"Don't even mention that," she hissed. "Looks like Dorcas is finally going to get the chance to knee him in the balls now."

I laughed hesitantly, wondering whether she was joking. "Say, why didn't you wear a green dress? I would've expected you to, since it matches your eyes and all…."

She turned her face away and made a small noise. "I hate the color green."

Taken aback, I stopped moving. "Oh."

"You always gave me these ridiculous things for my birthday and Christmas, and it's always green. That's why I threw them away, you know. Not because I didn't like them."

"Oh."

"Is that all you can say?"

"I love you."

"Mm-hmm," she broke away. "I'm going to get more firewhiskey."

My eyebrows shot up. "You're not yourself today."

"We aren't at school," she countered. "Now, do you want firewhiskey or not?"

* * *

><p>"Lily," I heard James' concerned voice. "That's your fifth one. You shouldn't be drinking so much."<p>

"You're one to talk," I lifted yet another cup to my lips. "You and Black always drink a barrel apiece at every party we hold in the common room."

"Yeah, well, we're hardened men, we can take it." His hands covered mine, loosening my grip on the cup. "You on the other hand…"

"What about me?" I snapped and promptly tripped over a chair leg. James steadied me, pulling me over to a couch.

"You're drunk," he confirmed. "Now, lie down here while I go get you some water."

"Wait," I grabbed his arm. "I've my wand. _Agua—aguamenti_!"

A fountain of dark wine shot from my wand instead of the water I wanted. I heard James sigh and sheepishly settled my head on the couch, per his instructions. A few moments later, the cool brim of a water bottle was being pressed to my lips, and I gratefully sipped the water.

"What do you know," I slurred. "Lily Evans is drunk."

"Never thought I'd see the day," he agreed. "And I'm not even that drunk. Yet."

"My head hurts," I realized. "I think I might throw up."

"Breath through your mouth," he advised, conjuring up a bucket, "and hold this just in case."

I drew my knees up to my chest before remembering I was in a dress, and hastily crossed them. I saw James' eyes flick away in the other direction and I flushed, dropping my head and letting my hair cover my face. After a few minutes, the urge passed and I leaned back, still taking deep breaths.

"So this is how it feels to be drunk," I gasped for air. "To be honest, it's not that bad, if I've got you here with me."

"You're more drunk than I thought," he draped an arm around my shoulders and I could hear the smile in his voice. "Oh Merlin. Let's hope you forget this next morning."

"Don't try anything funny," I warned, but my voice sounded feeble and the effect was ruined. "Or I'm calling Dorcas over."

"Please, have a little faith in me. I want our first time to be when we're both Potters," he teased. I smiled a little.

"That doesn't sound too bad."

"Not at all," he agreed, pulling me closer. Through a hazy fog, I could hear a steady, excitement-fused chanting.

"What're they saying?" I asked curiously.

"It's the New Year's countdown," he told me, brow furrowed.

"Oh dear," I sighed. "Well, let's go find a mistletoe."

He stiffened, looking down at me. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine! Help me up," I extended a hand. Stumbling to my feet, I glanced around blearily. James, who was right next to me, seemed weak and fuzzy to my alcohol-poisoned eyes. I could just barely make up his tie and rumpled shirt. I pulled him to me by the tie, until we were mere centimeters apart.

"So this is it, huh?" he asked quietly. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," I smiled. "Let's just hope Dorcas doesn't see us."

The countdown was ticking closer and closer to New Year's, and the volume getting gradually louder and louder, until I thought my skull would burst. Taking comfort in James' presence, I calmed my racing heart and dared sneak a peek at his face. His hazel eyes were staring into my own with such a burning intensity, such a strong desire that I dropped my eyes immediately. Hesitantly, his arms wrapped around my waist just as the countdown ended. Our lips met, slowly at first, then grew. My arms found themselves around his neck and our hearts, minds, and bodies were melded as one. I heard cheering and clapping, and broke away, smiling. Then, still holding onto James, I threw up.

* * *

><p>"Oh Merlin!" I cried as James jumped out of the way. "I'm so sorry!"<p>

"It's all right," he grabbed some napkins off a nearby table. "Now you see why getting drunk isn't such a good idea after all."

"I'm so, so sorry," I apologized as I helped him clean up the mess. "I didn't want our first kiss to end like that."

"What about a second one, then?" he asked, abandoning the mess of napkins and vomit. "Just promise me you won't throw up in my mouth this time," he added jokingly. I smiled wanly.

"I'll try not to."

Thankfully, this kiss went much smoother, and I let out a tiny breath I'd been holding. "Now that's what I'm talking about," James whispered, lowering his lips onto mine again. Suddenly, I felt someone wrench us apart.

"What are you _doing_ to Lily?" Dorcas demanded angrily while Mary and Remus and Alice and Frank and Xeno looked on—Marlene and Sirius were both curiously missing.

"Wait, let me explain—!" James protested, but before he could, Dorcas' high-heeled foot connected with his crotch. He fell down, narrowly missing the mess, clutching his family treasures and howling in uncontrolled pain. Turning to me, Dorcas said,

"You look terrible, Lily. What _did_ he do to you?"

"Dorcas, you idiot!" I snapped. "He didn't do anything! And you just kicked my boyfriend!"

"Huh?" she stopped for a second and stared. "Wait—what?"

I knelt down by James' limp form. "Are you all right?"

"I knew—" he grimaced in pain. "—there was a reason why I picked you to be Keeper."

"Huh?" It was my turn to be confused, as I watched assailant and assailed high-five each other.

"But next time," James continued, "practice your kicks on a Quaffle, not your team captain's private parts, yeah?"

"Yeah, I'd not fancy having to explain to Lily why her future husband is infertile," Dorcas shot me a sly wink.

"OI!" I leapt up and fell down again. Dorcas danced out of my strangling reach. "Oh, damn all those firewhiskeys!"

"I disagree," James pulled me up into his arms. "If not for the firewhiskeys, none of this would've happened."

Then he kissed me, long and sweet.

"Watch it, Potter. I still haven't forgiven you for snogging Lily," Dorcas warned. "Do you want me to use my excellent Keeper kick on you again?"

He ignored her, taking my face in his hands. Then…

"That's for getting your hands all over my best friend," a smug Dorcas told a writhing James with tears leaking out of his eyes. "Oh Merlin, I can't wait until your wedding!"

_Fin._


	43. Lily!

"Lily! There's an owl at the window!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! It's snowing!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! It's Christmas Eve!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! There's a tornado ravaging the school!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! The giant squid is outside the dormitory!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! It's your birthday!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! There's an earthquake!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! It's the end of the world!"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily! Will you marry me?"

Lily carried on reading.

"Lily, I am going to burn that damn book!"

Lily looked up mildly, finishing the last sentence and closing her book. "Someone say my name?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Whew! Back to normal at last. I accidentally posted the last chapter of the party twice, so feel free to review any one of them. Any more dares, anyone?<strong>

**~Gella**


	44. Oops, my dad died Better go celebrate!

"Not. Bloody. Again," James stared down at his best mate, passed out, drunk, on the carpet of his and Lily's flat. Marlene looked apologetically at him.

"Sorry, James. He got the news that his father had passed away—"

"—and immediately went out to celebrate, I assume?" James finished for her. Marlene nodded. James sighed wearily. "Well, he can stay here tonight. I don't—

"He's all yours, James!" Marlene yelled over her shoulder, already halfway out the door.

"—imagine you'd fancy explaining to your parents about this…" James trailed off as the front door slammed shut. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, then accepted the reality and set to making a crude bed for Sirius on the couch. "If Lily wakes up and sees you," James muttered under his breath to the unconscious Sirius, "I am _so_ going to murder you."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: A nice short little drabble. Double update today! I must be feeling generous. Right, some of you might not be able to review this chapter, nor chapter 47, nor the next one. You don't have to log out and send an anonymous review or anything (although I'd appreciate it and love you forever if you did), I'll just get it over with then you can review chapter 50 and above :D Right?<strong>

**~Gella **


	45. Dammit, Padfoot

"Sirius!" James yelled. "You owe me ten Galleons!"

"Why?" Sirius yelled back.

"Shut up!" Remus yelled at the two of them. "I'm trying to do homework!"

"You owe me ten Galleons because Lily Evans has finally said yes to me!"

"She did not," Sirius scoffed. "You just want some Deluxe Sugar Quills."

"Dammit, Padfoot. You know me too well."

* * *

><p>"Sirius!" James yelled. "You owe me twenty Galleons!<p>

"Why?" Sirius yelled back.

"Shut up!" Remus yelled at the two of them. "I'm filling out my job application!"

"You owe me twenty Galleons because I proposed and Lily said yes!"

"She did not," Sirius scoffed. "You're just low on spending money right now."

"Dammit, Padfoot. Why are you always bursting my bubble?"

* * *

><p>"Sirius!" James yelled. "You owe me fifty Galleons!"<p>

"Why?" Sirius yelled back.

"Shut up!" Remus croaked at the two of them. "Last night was the full moon, you idiots."

"You owe me fifty Galleons because Lily's pregnant! I'm going to be a dad!"

"She is not," Sirius scoffed. "You just want the brand-new Nimbus 1999 that just came out."

"Dammit, Padfoot. Can't you let me be happy for once?

* * *

><p>"Sirius!" James yelled. "You owe me seventy Galleons!"<p>

"Why?" Sirius yelled back.

"Shut up!" Remus mumbled to the two of them. "Today's my birthday! Aren't you supposed to be nice to people on their birthdays?"

"You owe me seventy Galleons because Harry just spoke his first words!"

"He did not," Sirius scoffed. "You just need to buy Remus a birthday present."

"Dammit, Padfoot! He's right there, you know!"

* * *

><p>"Sirius?" James slowly sat up. "You there?"<p>

A thick white mist surrounded him. He stood up creakily, every part of his body aching. He didn't remember how he got here, or where here was. He pressed his fingers to his temples, trying to remember something, _anything_, prior to this strange place. Flashes of memories came and went, just slightly out of grasp, like the theme of a long-forgotten song. He remembered playing with Harry, making puffs of orange and purple lights with his wand, then—Voldemort! His eyes snapped opened, and he laughed, long and loud. So this was it. He was dead.

"Oh Padfoot," he said, eyes closed. "I have died protecting my son and wife, just as I said I would, all those years ago. Are you finally going to cough up now?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I have mixed feelings about this chapter. Did you like it or hate it? I'm sorta in the middle :L<strong>

**~Gella**


	46. My Attempt at a Crackfic

**AN: Now, before you read this, it's not exactly a chapter, but still a chapter. I've seen other authors do it before, so I'm going to try it now. You have been warned.**

* * *

><p><strong>-Phone rings obnoxiously in the Potter residence-<strong>

Lily: James! Go watch Harry for a mo'. I gotta answer the phone.

**-James struggles with baby Harry, then gives up as he spits a mouthful of apple juice into his face-**

James: DAMMIT, BOY! **–Wipes off glasses-**

Lily: Shut up! Hello? Potter residence, Lily here. Oh hello Mum. Mm-hmm, yes, you? BLOODY HELL YOU'RE PREGNANT? Oh…ohhhh! Sorry, you're coming to visit—

James: How does she get 'pregnant' and 'coming to visit' mixed up?

Lily: Shut it, Potter. Er, no, not you, Mum—

James: Well, technically you're a Potter too so you can't call me that.

Lily: —yes, yes, you're coming to visit—_YOU'RE COMING TO VISIT?_

James: Isn't that what she just said?

Harry: **-picks up James' wand- **Googoo-gaga! Heehee-haha! _Avada Kedavra_! **–Gurgles innocently-**

James: Bloody hell, Harry. Next time you go around shouting that, aim it at your Uncle Sirius, not your daddy, yeah?

Harry: Daddy stupid.

James with tears of joy forming at his eyes: Lily! Harry spoke his first words! **–Grabs Harry and twirls very ungracefully around the living room, smashing several trinkets and stepping on the cat's tail- **

Lily: **-screams-** JAMES BLOODY POTTER! SHUT YOUR MOUTH BEFORE I SHUT IT FOR YOU! Yes, Mummy dear, you were saying? Right, right. Mm-hmm, yes, you're coming in—IN TWENTY BLOODY MINUTES?

James: Oh Harry you're so smart! So talentedly clever! So delightfully brilliant!

Lily: Well, see you in twenty minutes then. **–hangs up and turns to James-** WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING FOR? MY PARENTS ARE ARRIVING IN TWENTY MINUTES! GRAB THE VACUUM, GRAB THE DUSTER, GRAB THE DISHWASHER—

James: Lily dear! Our son spoke his first words!

Lily: —GRAB EVERYTHING BECAUSE SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN!

James: He said "Daddy stupid". Now if that's not a sign of endearment to his daddy, then nothing is. Wait. Santa Claus? Where?

Lily: My parents, you dunce! Not Santa. Everyone knows Santa isn't real.

James **with tears forming again at the corner of his eyes, this time not so joyously**: W-wait, Santa i-isn't…h-he isn't r-re-real?

Lily: **-sighs- **I married a bloody fool.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: xDDD Oh my Merlin, I had so much fun writing that. Crackfics are hilarious, no? You guys can review this chapter normally now, right? Special thanks to skaterofthebooks and Pelahnar for being diligent reviewers. If you want, take the poll on my profile about my age, I'm curious :P <strong>

**~Gella**


	47. The Dinner Party

"Why is it," I grumbled to nobody in particular, "that whenever I survive a horrible event, another immediately comes my way?"

The horrible event in question was Slughorn's end-of-the-year dinner party, and Marlene had just not-so-kindly—and at the last minute, too—informed me that I needed to wear something formal. She, of course, is wearing a dress. And me? Not so simple. I had outgrown my old dress robes and hadn't thought to buy another set, and being the perfectly lucky girl I am not, we had just passed the last Hogsmeade weekend of the year. Then there was the matter of finding a date. Yes, it wasn't required, but I didn't feel like sitting and watching as Marlene and Sirius and Frank and Alice twirled around the dance floor again this year. The previous years I was fine with it, but this year…this year I couldn't get James Potter off my mind. It must be the bloody hormones, but I was actually toying with the idea of bringing him as my date. Of course, that'll cause rumors of us going out to circulate wildly as always, but I was beyond caring. So I cornered him one day after lunch. It went pretty well, I think.

"Potter!" I yelled after him. "Wait up."

He turned around, and looked pleasantly surprised that it was me. "Yeah?"

"You know the party Slughorn has? Tonight?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"You're going, aren't you?"

"Yes…"

"Have you got a date already?" I asked, my heart sinking. What was I thinking? Of _course_ James Potter would have a date; I'd imagine all of the girls in the Slug Club had asked him already. I was already planning my exit, namely, running away as fast as I can, when his answer caught me off-track.

"No, I haven't, as a matter of fact. Have you?"

"Well, I'll be going now, see you—wait, did you just say you haven't got a date?" I was already backing up when my brain slowly processed that he actually doesn't have a date. Yet. "Well, I haven't got one either so I wondering if we could go together—as friends, you know?"

His eyebrows disappeared into his dark hair. "You…me…go together…?"

"Yes," I mumbled. "Listen, if you don't want to, it's perfectly fine—"

"Lily, of course I want to!" he grinned widely. "But—this isn't a prank or anything, right? Sirius didn't set you up to this, did he?"

"Of course not!" I scoffed. "I wouldn't take a dare like this."

"So we're actually going together? As a couple?"

"As _friends_," I emphasized the words. "A couple, yes, but friends."

"Friends," he nodded, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. I glared at it, and he immediately moved his features into a more somber arrangement. "When does the party start again?"

"Eight o'clock, I think. So I'll meet you in the common room a few minutes before that, all right?"

"All right," he confirmed. "I'll see you there." He brushed his lips against my cheek softly, and left me standing there, an idiotic smile on my face. Then a more pressing matter shook me out of my daydream fantasies.

"Bloody hell! Dress robes!"

Even I as raced back to the Gryffindor Tower, my brain was not on dress robes, but was instead lingering on the face of James Potter.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Wow, did Lily just ask out James? What's this world come to? This can be any year you like; I didn't exactly plan it for a specific year. So next time this story updated will be next year. Have a safe and happy New Years! Don't get pregnant and don't do drugs! Bye!<strong>

**~Gella**


	48. Peter Confesses His Love

"Er, James?" Peter squeaked nervously. James peered over his essay at him, rather impatiently so.

"Yeah, Wormtail?"

"I need to say something," his eyes traveled around the Head common room, where the Marauders and Lily's friends had taken shelter from the raging snowstorm outside. "Lily, you need to hear this too."

"Yes, Peter?" Lily asked from across the room. "What is it?"

Peter took a deep breath, then looked at James again. "Are you sure I should?"

Lily shot James a look; he shook his head. He was as mystified as she. "Yes, get on with it, Pete."

"Oh all right." He cleared his throat noisily. "Well, many of you may not know it, but I've been in love with—"

"Oh my," Marlene stared. "I didn't think this would turn into a love confession."

"—Lily, ever since first year. And in the seven years that followed, there was not a waking moment in my life that I didn't think about her. Now that I have revealed my darkest, deepest secret, I bid you all a good night and sweet dreams!" the poor bloke sprinted for the portrait hole, leaving behind a stunned, brittle silence. You could literally hear a pin drop, which is why when a single cough rang out, seven pairs of heads swiveled to look at its owner.

"Sorry," Sirius spluttered, red in the face and coughing into his sleeve. "I'm going to go now. Anyone have spare money I can use to reward Peter boy for his excellent performance?"

At those words, the gears and bolts in Lily and James' brains turned simultaneously, putting two and two together, and, almost at the same time, arriving at the conclusion.

"SIRIUS!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Welcome back to this story, with fluff! Anyway, someone dared me to write a chapter about Peter confessing his love for someone, and being the terrible author that I am, I couldn't come up with a reasonable OC <strong>_**or**_** Original Order girl, so Sirius to the rescue! Or not…**

**~Gella**


	49. All Because of Chocolate

"Who stole my chocolate?" Remus growled, ripping down the curtains around his bed.

"It isn't me!" Sirius exclaimed. "Why do you always assume it's me?"

"Because I bloody _know_ it's you! You are going to pay, Black."

Sirius watched incredulously as his friend storm downstairs. "He really likes his chocolate, huh?"

* * *

><p>Sirius was having a good time. A great time, actually. There he was, in a Muggle bar, with a cute girl on his lap, and two beer bottles, one in each hand, and more to come. Yes, it was great indeed. Little did he know, Remus was watching the pair, plotting his revenge with deviousness that only comes with stolen chocolate.<p>

"So," he murmured in a sultry whisper in her ear, "I've got a motorcycle, built for two. What do you say we stay at my place tonight?"

"Sure," the girl giggled, sliding off his lap. "Let's go."

Wounding one arm around the girl's—he didn't know her name, and didn't intend to ask for it—small waist, he swigged the last drops of his beer, and tossed a few Muggle coins onto the bar. Before he could take two steps, a brightly colored figure caught his eye. Turning his head, he dimly made out Remus, who was walking towards them with a new swing to his hips that Sirius had never seen before, and quite frankly, would rather never see again.

"Who _is_ that?" the girl asked, her button nose scrunching up in distaste. Sirius wrinkled his nose as well, and made a mental note to get a girl next time with a ski-slope nose.

"A—ah, acquaintance of mine. Let's go before he sees—" Sirius tightened his grip on the girl's waist, ready to carry her out of there if deemed necessary. However, Remus was already in front of him, blocking his path.

"Sorry hun," he said to the shocked girl while slinging an arm around Sirius' shoulders. "But he's already taken." And with that, Remus planted a kiss on his cheek. Screaming, the girl twisted out of Sirius' arms and ran, not once looking back. The other patrons at the bar started whispering and pointing at the strange couple. Remus gave him another kiss on the other cheek and added in a voice loud enough to carry throughout the entire bar, "James is watching the kids. I've got a little present for you tonight. Just the two of us," he winked wickedly.

"Wha—?" Sirius stammered.

"I'll see you there!"

Then, still swinging his hips, Remus walked out of the bar, blowing a backwards kiss to Sirius. He realized that most of the people in the bar were throwing him looks and moving away. Finally, one dared to say,

"Well, go on with your boyfriend then. It seems to me that you're in for a treat tonight!" At this, the entire bar burst into laughter, with loud wolf-whistles and many more urges similar to that. Sirius gaped around at them. Then he realized the implied meaning.

"DAMMIT, MOONY!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: For all you SiriusRemus lovers out there ;D I don't really write ships like these, because I believe that Remus and Mary are destined for each other, or at least in Marauder Era, but this idea popped up in my mind and I just had to. A new twist to the classic "Remus-gets-Sirius-back-for-stealing-his-chocolate" prompt.**

**~Gella**


	50. What a Class!

When Professor McGonagall announced to her students that they will be working in pairs today, she should have anticipated the loud "TEAM TIME!" from Black and Lupin, followed by an awkward high-five—in which Black had to bring up Lupin's hand in order to perform the ritual—or the stony silence between Potter and Evans, which the former had tried to break by cracking a rather weak joke, if she may say so herself ("Divorced partners," Potter had winked. Evans responded by apparently jabbing his leg with her wand, if the watering eyes and the painful-sounding noises were of any evidence). She also didn't think that even an absolutely non-flame-related subject like this would cause fierce red sparks to erupt out of Emma Finnegan's wand and set her sleeves on fire. But, she reflected fondly, without those things, her students wouldn't be her students. Now, on with the detention slips.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Eh, not exactly the best chapter, but I always thought McGonagall possessed a soft spot for her students, no matter how strict she acts, as we clearly saw in DH part 2. Now that's one part I approve of the movie. And just about the only part too, mind.<strong>

**~Gella**


	51. Showoff, Bully, Toerag

James Potter. How to describe him?

He's arrogant. He's annoying. He's snarky. He's the biggest prat I've had the misfortune to meet. He is a showoff, a bully, a toerag. I could go on and on and on about how bigheaded, self-centered, aggravating, egoistic he is.

I hate him.

He loves me. Or so he says.

If you asked me about my thoughts on him, my immediate answer would be the entire second paragraph up there. But, if, say, you simply nodded and asked me to keep going, I would soon run out of words. Yes, that's a lot up there, and I have a big vocabulary, but a girl can only have so many insults to hurl at her sworn enemy, right? If you asked me to delve deeper into his being, you'll find me spewing more answers than I thought possible on James Potter.

He's got hordes of female admirers who would give an arm or a leg or both just to be in his vicinity. He's got blonde girls, brunette girls, leggy girls, chesty girls, tall girls, short girls drooling after him. Yet, out of all of them, he chose me.

Me. Booky, redheaded, freckly, know-it-all Lily Evans.

Me, the only girl at Hogwarts who hasn't fallen under his charm, but can also insult, hex, slap, kick, and punch him at the same time.

I still hate him.

Wait, let me rephrase that. I don't hate him. I _dislike_ him. Yes, there we go, that's more accurate. That dislike is bordering on the line of hate, but not quite. Because, you see, he's matured. His ego isn't as big as before, and believe it or not, even his head deflated a bit. He's still the haughty, smug James Potter I know and hate—I mean, _dislike_, but he's…changed. And what about me? When I look at him, do I still see the mischievous prankster that was once the bane of my life, or do I see a man who, as he claimed all those years ago, truly loves me?

I don't know. Only time will tell.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Aha! Lily's starting to fall for James! This is probably the middle or end of sixth year, or early seventh. I'm sorry I made it sort of sappy, but finishing sad books always affect my writing style T_T <strong>

**~Gella**


	52. The New 'Goffic' Marlene

**AN: Everyone loves a good crackfic. So here we go.**

* * *

><p>"Mar?" Sirius called up into the girls' dormitories. "Mars, are you going to Hogsmeade or not?"<p>

"Just a second," his girlfriend called back. "I'll be right down."

A few moments later, a black-haired girl slid to a stop at his feet.

"Excuse me," he said politely, and shifted his position so that the girl could pass. However, she stood up and looked at him expectantly, as if waiting for something.

"Let's go, then!" she said impatiently.

Sirius nearly jumped in shock. He knew that voice! Looking into the girl's face, his suspicion was confirmed. No one else's eyes have that exact shade of blue.

"M-Marlene?" he whispered.

"Yes, that's my name. Let's get going now. I don't want to keep the others waiting."

"What the blazes did you _do_ to your face?"

Marlene fluffed her new, spiky black hair, pouting—Sirius noted that she had gotten a lip, nose, and an eyelid ring—and batting her heavily made-up lashes. "You don't like it? It's a Muggle thing called Goth."

"No! You look terrible!" Sirius gagged. "Please lose the piercings, and change your hair back into blonde, and wipe the bloody black stuff off—"

"Very supportive, aren't you?" she huffed, storming past him into the common room. Everyone stared and whispered, and a giggle here and there broke out. Sirius wanted to die. His reputation was forever ruined.

* * *

><p>"What the hell did you do to your <em>face<em>?" Lily gasped upon seeing her best friend's new getup.

"_Thank_ you, Evans," Sirius cried, shaking her by the shoulders. "Knock some sense into her, would you?"

"Oi, hands off my girl," James growled then stumbled backwards. "Marlene? Is that you?"

"Why are you guys all so mean?" she wailed, tears washing out streaks of makeup on her face, making her look even scarier than before. "I just wanted to try something new!"

Sirius looked at James. James looked at Lily. Lily looked at Marlene, who was sobbing on the lawn. They looked at each other. Then, by some tacit, unanimous agreement, the three of them left their friend on the grass and raced into Hogsmeade.

* * *

><p>"Let go of me!" Marlene screeched, struggling in Sirius' arms.<p>

"Marlene McKinnon," he growled through clenched teeth. "We are bloody trying to help you. Now stay _still_!"

Lily attacked her face with a wet sponge. A thick layer of makeup peeled off and Lily dunked a second sponge into a bucket of water and proceeded to the other side of her face.

James took out all the piercings using his wand and healed the holes it left behind. Then he returned her hair back into the normal shade of blonde.

Sirius was left with the impossible task of keep Marlene on the ground and not kicking or punching one of her friends in the face. With no other options, he kissed her.

"Eurgh!" Lily jumped back, slopping water everywhere. "Next time you decide to jam your face onto your girlfriend's, at least let me know!"

"Shut up and tie her ankles and arms!" he broke away long enough to get that out. "Bloody hell, this lipstick tastes terrible." Then he dove down again, buying James just enough time to conjure a length of rope and bind her arms and legs together.

"You can come up now, mate," James wrinkled his nose. Sirius rolled off, wiping his mouth on a sponge. A black smudge came off his lips.

Marlene, restored to the normal herself, lay limply on the ground, breathing heavily.

"Marlene?" Lily asked cautiously, bending over her. "You all right?"

An eye cracked open, glaring up at her. Only it was no longer dark blue. Instead, the corneas were a clear turquoise. Her hair turned back into black with dark red streaks, and a spiky leather choker appeared around her throat. Her jacket and jeans changed into a lacy corset with a short miniskirt and ripped fishnets and studded combat boots.

"Marlene?" Lily stuttered. "What the—"

"Hai," the new monstrosity said. "mah nayme iz Enoby dr'knss demntia Rraven Way nd i hve come to nme hogwats da knew maru su land"

"RUN!" Sirius screamed as the zombie of his girlfriend rose on tottering legs and stumbled towards them.

"Someone changed Marlene into this!" James yelled as they sprinted.

"No SHIT!" Lily panted, looking over her shoulder. "And—HOLY MERLIN THAT'S FUCKING SCARY!"

The boys turned to see Enoby making out keenly against a tree in the Forbidden Forest—huh? They were in Hogsmeade!—with a blonde boy that distinctively resembled Lucius Malfoy. Then the boy took off her leather bra and inserted his you-know-what into Ebonnie's you-know-what and they did you-know-what for the first time. Then Enobi lost her virility.

"HOLY MOTHER LOAD THAT MURDERED MY EYES!" James shrieked.

"HOLY FATHER LOAD MY GIRLFRIEND IS HAVING YOU-KNOW-WHAT WITH A MALFOY!" Sirius roared, outraged.

"BOTH OF YOU, SHUT UP! AND STOP SPEAKING IN ENOBY LANGUAGE, SIRIUS!" Lily yelled. "RUN FORREST RUN!"

"WHO THE HELL IS FORREST?" James asked. "YOU AREN'T CHEATING ON ME WITH HIM, ARE YOU?"

"SHE'S CATCHING UP! IN A BLOODY FLYING CAR!" Sure enough, a black Ford Anglia with the car plate 666 landed on top of the three.

"WE'RE GONNA DIE!" James howled.

"THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!" Lily guffawed.

"YO MOMMA!" Sirius giggled.

Then the car crushed them. Those were the last words of James Potter, Sirius Black, and Lily Evans.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: CRAAAAAAAAAAAACK! Sorry Marisa, I turned your dare into pure CRAAAAAAAACK!<br>Note: If you haven't read My Immortal, or watched that movie where the only line I remember is RUN FORREST RUN and if you don't live in America, you won't get many of these references. And that, my friend, is a very good thing. Take pride in your innocence.  
>Another note: the spelling and capitalization errors (of when Enoby speaks) were on purpose. I actually edited this chapter because I though it was too...good for someone like her. <strong>**  
><strong>


	53. Peter's Sorting

When the Sorting Hat was placed on the head of Peter Pettigrew, it took longer than all the other Marauders and Lily combined for it to work out where to put him.

"Well, there's courage, though just a smidgen," the Hat said—rather obnoxiously so. "And…ah, I see. You want to be in Hufflepuff?"

"Yes please," Peter whispered. "It's the only House good for me."

"I disagree. You think you're not smart enough for Ravenclaw, yes?"

"Yeh—" he began to say, but the Hat—he was _really_ starting to dislike it now—cut across him.

"And you think you aren't courageous enough to be a Gryffindor, am I right?"

"I'm scared of the dark" was his response. Or rather, it would've been if the Hat had given him a chance to answer.

"And I see that you hadn't even thought about Slytherin. But you know, that's where you'll really soar," it told him conversationally. Peter's eyes snapped open.

"_Slytherin_?" he stuttered. "B-but, my dad's a Hufflepuff and my mum's a Muggle. I _can't_ be in Slytherin!"

"And why ever not?" the Hat countered. "From what I can see, you want to prove yourself to others, to prove to them that you're really smarter and more clever than you seem. You can be cunning, even calculating. Slytherin will be good for you, my friend."

"Can't you just call Hufflepuff and be done with it?" he begged, clutching the edges of the stool.

"You want to be in Hufflepuff because you were told that's where all the bumpkins get placed," the Hat said abruptly. "But let me tell you something. Hufflepuffs possess a trait that no other House has: loyalty. Even the most devout Gryffindor will abandon ship—only if it's absolutely imperative, mind you, but they'll do it. A Hufflepuff? They _stay_, Peter, until the very end. And I sense that you don't have what it takes to be in that House."

"I'm not loyal enough?" Peter asked, confused. "But I've always been there—for my mother! She's deathly ill and my father just drinks away all our money—but I've taken care of her—!"

The Hat interrupted him once again as if he hadn't spoken. "Or perhaps Gryffindor. You will have a great opportunity to make a solid group of friends. But be careful, that friendship might one day become a curse."

"Oh, so now it's Gryffindor, isn't it," Peter said, annoyed. "Well, make up your mind, Hat, we haven't got all day and there's others you need to Sort."

"Oh, indeed I will. And you'll do well to remember what I told you. GRYYFINDOR!" At last, the brim opened into a mouth and Peter was Sorted. Grateful, he scurried to the farthest table, trying not to flush under the gazes of so many older students. When he swung his legs over the bench, he smiled hesitantly at the two other boys that he'd shared a compartment on the way here, Sirius and Remus. The latter smiled back wanly, looking almost as gaunt as his poor mother, but the handsome, grey-eyed boy just nodded and turned his head away. He felt a bit disgruntled; what happened to the solid group of friends the Hat had mentioned? Then, the third member, James, joined the table, high-fived Sirius and grinned at Remus.

"I see you've made Gryffindor too," he said to Peter, a hint of surprise in his tone. A tiny shoot of anger flared up in him, but he calmed it. He did, after all, declare in the train that Hufflepuff was the House for him. He nodded back, but a dark, cold stone settled into his heart. Maybe the Hat was right. Right now, there was a burning passion to prove to James and Sirius both that he was worthy of their friendship. Little did he know, that small pebble of resent he felt now will one day become the ultimate factor in a devastating outcome.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Four hundred. Four bloody hundred. I think I got a little teary. Okay fine, I was practically sobbing. All my readers and reviewers, you don't know how much this means to me. I remember jumping with excitement when I reached seven reviews. Now, four hundred. You guys, I tell you, are bloody AWESOME. Congrats, Pelahnar, for being the 400<strong>**th****. And also to Trollin'InTheDeep for being the 394****th**** (tomorrow is Snape's birthday anyway, so why not?) and **_**such**_** kind words and the cool username. Also, can you guys do me a favor? From this chapter on, you can just review the ones that you **_**really**_** liked. You don't have to review every single chapter (not that I mind. But keep daring me!) but this is just for me to see which chapters are good and which ones need more work. I'm trying to improve my writing, in a way. Thanks so much again!**

**~Gella**


	54. Sirius, I'm Pregnant

"Sirius, I need to tell you something,"

"What is it, love?"

"I'm pregnant."

"You're WHAT?"

"Don't get too excited—"

"Tell me why I shouldn't. I'm going to be a dad!"

"It isn't yours."

"…"

"…"

"Oh."

"Yeah."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I saw this on FML and thought it'd be funny to put it into Marlene-Sirius perspective. That is all.<strong>

**~Gella**


	55. The Sinking Ship

**AN: Terrible, short chapter ahead. I'll post another one later but this is just for potato unicorn :P**

* * *

><p>Once upon a time, there were two people. They never snogged, they never shagged, they most certainly never confessed their deep-rooted, non-existent love to each other. That is the past, present, and future of the SiriusRemus ship.


	56. Friday the Thirteenth

"Lily." Sirius spoke solemnly. "Do you know what day it is?"

"It's Friday, I think. Why?"

"Do you know—and I mean, do you _know_, what day it is, today?"

"It's Friday!"

"No! What _day_!"

"That _is_ the day!"

"Oh…sorry! I meant," Sirius coughed and resumed his previous somber tone, "do you know—and I mean, do you _know_, what _date_ it is, today?"

"Sirius—" Lily was getting annoyed.

"It's Friday…" he paused for dramatic effect. "THE THIRTEENTH!"

Lily rolled her eyes. "You believe in that?"

Sirius' face fell. "You don't?"

"No…"

"Well anyways. As I was saying, today's the Friday the thirteenth. I suggest you and James get married now and make a baby before we all die."

"Go away, Sirius."

"Sorry mate, she really doesn't like you," Sirius called across the room to James.

"Tell her about 2012 next!" James yelled back.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: James is forcing Lily into going out with him by threatening her with…doomsdays? That's a new low mate, even for you. Another random chapter…I can't think of anything better, sorry Dx<strong>

**~Gella**


	57. Pillow War!

"You know how we should get Lily to choose between me and Remus?" James mused out loud. The Remus in question looked up, startled, by his friend's new theory, but James went on. "By having a duel."

Lily didn't even look up. "You do know that I don't fancy Remus, right?"

"You could just be saying that," James argued. "Who knows what you two are up to at night—"

Sirius spewed out his butterbeer. "My oh my, Jamie boy. That is one disturbing image."

"It's true!" James cried. "You could be sneaking off onto the grounds, having a midnight feast in the kitchens, snogging, shagging—anything!"

"Oooookay, James, I think you've had a bit too much sugar today—"

"YOU'RE NOT DENYING IT!" James wailed. "How could you do this to me, Remmy?"

"I think Lily's right," a concerned Remus said. "You didn't eat anything unusual at dinner, did you?" James ignored him, and went on with his theatrics.

"I challenge you, Remus John Lupin, to a mighty duel," he intoned, "for the heart and soul of the fair maiden Lily Evans—"

Sirius wrinkled his nose. "Prongs? Drop the act. It's really creeping me out,"

"Now, look here," Lily protested. "I'm not about to give either of you my _soul_ for Merlin's sake—"

"I don't like Lily!" Remus exploded. "No offense! I meant…I don't _like_ like her."

"Too bad," James snapped. "I want a duel and I'll get one."

"You don't know _how_ to duel. They haven't taught us any spells yet," Sirius reminded both of them.

"Oh…right." James looked deflated. Then he perked up again. "But who said we had to use magic?"

"Aren't all duels supposed to use magic?" Lily shot back.

"Not necessarily!" James looked triumphant. "Right. Let me rephrase this: I challenge you, Remus John Lupin, for the heart and soul—shut up Lily, I'm only trying to be authentic—of the fair maiden Lily Evans, with a pillow war!"

He grinned at the three of them. No one looked as awed as James thought they should. A few seconds later, Sirius coughed. James' head snapped towards his best mate, who was now trying to control his laughter but failing.

"Problem, Padfoot?"

"A pillow war?" Sirius snorted. "You're out of it, mate."

"Yes, a pillow war," James replied icily. "And Remus, if you have no further objections, let's go up to the dorm now and settle this for once and for all."

"But wait—!" Remus started to say, but James cut across him.

"I knew you'd be fine with it—let's go now, there's a good lad." Half-choking, half-dragging him, James heaved Remus up the stairs and gave Sirius and Lily a salute. "Well, I'll see you later, then."

The door clicked shut, and there were a few moments of silence. Then…

"Bloody hell," Lily said, eyes wide and holding very still. "What was that?"

A thud and a groan followed her words.

"I've a feeling that Moony might need us up there," Sirius sighed.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, I came to the realization today that none of my chapters are actually about what I wrote in my summary, thus the pillow war. I know I'm asking a lot of favors lately, but if you want to, please go read my Trio story, A Recipe For Disaster, I need to know if it's good enough to continue or not. If you think you can actually write a decent story (unlike me) out of the prompt, tell me and I'll consider giving it up for adoption. <strong>

**~Gella-who-sucks-at-writing-anything-not-Marauder-Era  
><strong>


	58. Feathers and Friendships

Sirius and Lily stared at the scene of carnage before them. Burst pillows and their contents littered the carpet, and each boy had a head full of white feathers. The covers on all the beds had been ripped down and was now covering what they two assumed was a casualty of the war. James was slumped against the bedpost, groaning and clutching the gigantic bump on his head, and Remus stood victorious, if not a little apologetic, in front of them.

"You won?" Sirius broke the silence.

"Yeah, I don't know how," Remus scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. "He sort of tripped and I just gave him a good whack to the head, then the next I know, he's on the floor."

"What did you whack him with?" Lily gasped at the size of the bruise.

"Your Beater's bat," Remus told Sirius. "I might've dented it a bit…"

"You whacked him," Sirius said faintly, "over the head—"

"With _THIS_?" Lily screeched, hefting the heavy cudgel. Remus nodded. "REMUS JOHN LUPIN, WHAT IS _WRONG_ WITH YOU?"

"Yeah mate, I'd say that was a little overboard," Sirius added. "That thing isn't light, you know."

"I'm okay!" James called weakly. "Give me a few seconds…"

"So who's that?" Lily pointed to the still figure under the bedsheets.

"That? Oh, that's just Frank. He walked in just when I—"

"He bloody broke my nose with that thing!" Frank Longbottom growled. He too sported a red bump the size of a dragon's egg on his forehead and also a recently healed bloody nose. Lily, Sirius, James, and Frank all turned to look at Remus.

"Who would've guessed that you've got the stuff in you, eh?" Sirius clapped him on the back. "Say, ever thought of playing Beater for the team next year?"

"Oh, no!" Remus said quickly. "I'd probably do more damage than good anyway."

"Too right that is," James heaved himself up and grabbed a good pillow. "Let's go!"

Lily sighed and rubbed her eyes. "Potter, would you look at your head! It's huge! You can't continue on in your condition!"

"Since when have you cared about my well-being?" he countered, getting up slowly. "Remus, you ready? I swear I will not lose this time!"

"Are they really doing this?" Lily sighed to Sirius.

"'Fraid so," he sighed back. And they were. Remus showed none of the considerable physical abilities he had possessed earlier, and James, despite his throbbing head, was gaining ground. Poor Frank was caught in the middle of it all, trying to shield himself from being stamped to death.

"_What_ is going on here?" Marlene McKinnon gasped, with Alice Rivers peeking over her shoulder. With a little squeal of shock she dragged Frank out from the war zone, barely ducking a pillow herself. Sirius propped himself up a bit higher on the dresser at Marlene's arrival, but she didn't even notice, busy as she is taking in the remains of the dormitory. "Just what are they doing?" she asked, turning to Lily.

"Fighting over my Lilykins," Sirius told her importantly. If his words were designed to make Marlene jealous, he definitely didn't get the outcome he wanted.

"Both of you, stop!" she shouted, and received a flying pillow to the face as a result. Indignant, she grabbed a pillow as well and whomped the offender over the head.

"Hey!" James yelled. "Who did that?"

Marlene ignored him. "Are you crazy or what? Fighting over Lily?"

"And I don't even fancy her!" Remus added, and paid for his lapse in attention as James swung his pillow at him. He went down headfirst.

"I win!" James declared.

"You win? In your dreams, Potter."

With that, Lily joined the fight. James was not expecting the brick-hard pillow that hit him in the face, but recovered fast enough to fling one in her direction.

"Oi, mate," Sirius called. "That's Lily you're hitting."

"Sorry Lily!" he called over the din, "but there are some things that always come before love."

"Damn right there is!" she called back, bewitching several pillows to fly towards him in an arrowhead formation. James looked impressed, even as the arrowhead hit him in the stomach with a resounding thunk.

"Wow, where'd you learn that?" he asked. Lily, instead of answering, sent another his way. "That's a really advanced spell," he added, rolling up.

"You flatter me," she said, hitting him across the face the good old fashioned way.

"Looks like I better go help out Jamie boy a bit," Sirius told Marlene.

"And I had better go help Lily," she foraged around the room for some non-broken pillows.

"And I'll be going!" Alice called, slamming the door and taking the wounded with her. No one paused.

"TAKE THAT!" Marlene screamed and whipped her pillow at Sirius' head.

"And that!" Lily said, bringing her pillow down forcefully on James' head.

"Now, now," Sirius said, twirling his wand, "I don't want to get too rough with the ladies—"

"We have no problem with the other way around," Marlene retorted.

"If that's the way you want it…"

"Then that's the way you'll get it," James finished for him, knocking Lily flat on her back. Marlene kicked Sirius' legs out from under him and followed up with a strike to the face.

"You did _not_ just do that," Sirius growled, advancing forward.

"Too late, she just did!" Lily intercepted him with another arrowhead.

The war continued late into the night, leaving its participants famished, exhausted, and thirsty for revenge. Morning found all four passed out amongst the whiteness, still clutching pillows and sporting various colorful injuries. Sirius and James learned to fear the teamwork of the girls and Lily and Marlene learned to fear the flatulence of the boys.

That night was the mark of the beginning of a decade. A decade of pranks, hexes, and insults, of victories and defeats, of fights, of flirts, of love. None of them will ever forget that night.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I have no idea how the pillow war ended on such a…formal note. I just don't know. <strong>

**~Gella**


	59. Peace and Quiet

Sirius gazed sourly into the crowd downstairs. It was the third Christmas family dinner he's been banned from since being Sorted into Gryffindor, but he didn't minded at all, not one bit. In fact, he relished in the fact that his parents had to scramble left and right to cover up the shame on the family name. While everyone is gathered downstairs crooning over _this_ mink stole and _that_ goblin-made watch, he was up here, pretending to be on his sickbed with the stomach flu, and tossing a few groans here and there. Finally, some time alone! Finally he could have some solitary. His mouth twisted upwards as he considered that: Sirius Black, Gryffindor rebel, Quidditch star, longing for peace and quiet? But strangely enough, that's something he never could get enough of. His small smirk became a full-blown grin as he toyed with the possibility of marching straight down the staircase and announcing the news that no one in his family, his parents and Reg aside, has ever heard of, or will ever imagine, for that case. Then again, his family never did possess any quantity, no matter how small, of imagination. Oh sure, there were awkward moments when his look-alike in Slytherin House slipped up in his charade of Sirius, and sometimes when a snide comment or two about his apparent lack of Quidditch skills found their way into the dinner table conversation, but other than that, no one has ever considered the possibility that a Black could be in any other House than Slytherin. His smile became bitter as his mind arrived at this, and he craved, more than ever, to show them who he really was. Peace and quiet, he reminded himself. He slipped back into his room, remaining watchful as ever for anyone ascending the stairs. He was a lion, silently waiting his chance to pounce free of this nest of snakes, for once and for all. But right now, peace and quiet was all that mattered.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Before you say anything, I know what I wrote is impossible. I know that Andromeda, Bellatrix, Narcissa, Lucius, and who knows how many other cousins were attending Hogwarts with him at the same time. I just wanted to see if I could write angsty again, and sort of bring the idea that his family has someone on Polyjuice Potion pretending to be Sirius the Slytherin, while concealing the <strong>_**real**_** Sirius, the Gryffindor, from the rest of the world. Again, I know this will never happen; he's too attention-grabbing to be kept secret, unlike Harry. On another note, the pillow war for the last two chapters are in first year, hence them not knowing any spells and Sirius asking Remus to join the team NEXT YEAR, since first years aren't allowed. I even included Marlene and Alice's last names. I just didn't think it'd be that confusing xD **

**~Gella**


	60. Not Strong Enough

When Lily Evans threw herself between her son and Voldemort on that fateful night, begging him to kill her instead, she wasn't thinking of anything else, but how blissful death would be. She was too tired. Too tired of hiding. Too tired of being strong. She wanted nothing more than to sink into Death's welcoming arms and leave behind the war, the secrecy and suspicion. She had done enough and beyond, and going down in a last stand of defiance, dying for her one and only son, seemed appropriate. She had nothing left to live for anymore. Her friends and family, everyone that she held dear, were all gone. Mary, quiet, shy Mary, murdered because of her blood status. Alice and Frank, tortured into insanity because of their silence. Dorcas, killed on a mission, leaving behind cheery promises that she will never keep. Marlene, killed by the Dark Lord himself, on the eve of the New Year. And James, who was undoubtedly dead, struck down as he valiantly tried to protect his family, for the last time. She would rather die than face the world alone, without her friends, her son, her James. She knew full well that there was a high possibility of mother and son both dying in that room that night. She hoped Harry, and James, would forgive her for her weakness, but right now, death was her only escape.

"Please!" she heard herself sob. "Not Harry, anyone but Harry! Take me instead!"

The high voice laughed once. "Very well, if that is your wish…"

They say your life flashes before your eyes moments before the inevitable finality. Lily Evans saw a flash of green. She heard her son crying, realizing this was no act, that his mum would never be coming back. Her lips formed the words, "Be strong, Harry." Her cold hands slipped from the bars of the crib, dropping lifelessly at her sides. Then, she was floating, light as a feather. She was free at last. When the mist cleared, a figure was in front of her.

"James!" she wept, flinging herself into his arms. "James, oh, James! I'm sorry—I wasn't strong enough—"

"Lily," he said softly. "You've done all you can, love. I'm so proud of you." Those beautiful hazel eyes gazed into hers. "Harry will be all right. Our son will be all right."

Tears pooled behind her eyes. "I love you."

"I love you too," he kissed her gently. "Now, come on. There're some people you might want to see."

A small trickle of people had gathered, and they now formed a loose semicircle. Wondrously, she found Mary, smiling hugely, Dorcas, a happy grin on her face, Marlene, who immediately wrapped her in a hug. She saw her parents, eyes sparkling with pride.

"Mum! Dad!" she cried, throwing her arms around them. No words were exchanged. The three of them simply hung on to each other, and that was enough.

"Let's go," James said, and together, the seven of them walked towards the light, and went on.


	61. Padfoot

"Hi Lily! I got a pet." James announced brightly.

"You mean the dog?" Lily said. "Oh, er…he looks very, um, cuddly."

"His name is Padfoot," James continued.

She frowned. "Isn't that what you call Black?"

"Yes, but you see, I loved Padfoot so much that I decided to name Sirius after him," James explained. Padfoot barked his agreement.

"Oh, I see—argh!" Lily wiped the dog slobber off her face, and scrubbing it off of her essay. "James! Look what Padfoot did!"

"Bad Padfoot," James scolded. Padfoot gave a doggy grin, his pink tongue lolling out. "Hey look, I think he likes you!"

"Yay me," Lily said coldly. "Can you leave so I can finish my homework?"

"Sure," James tugged Padfoot out the portrait hole. "Let's go, Padfoot!"

* * *

><p>"Hey Remmy!" James dropped in beside his friend. "Meet my new dog, Padfoot."<p>

"Since when did you get a dog?" Remus asked suspiciously.

"My parents sent him," James said.

"With an owl?"

"No, with a hippogriff. Of course an owl, Remus."

"If you say so…hey, you know, that dog looks awfully lot like Sirius…"

"Bye Remmy!"

* * *

><p>"Peter!" James waved him over. "Say hi to Padfoot."<p>

"Hi, Padfoot," Peter said nervously. James laughed.

"Oh, go on, pet him, he doesn't bite."

Peter stuck out a hand and touched the top of Padfoot's head, who immediately contradicted his master's statement as Peter snatched his hand back, sucking on his bleeding fingers.

"Oh, Pete—don't cry, mate—oh, bloody hell," James sighed as a wailing Peter took off in the direction of the hospital wing. "Bad Padfoot!"

Padfoot barked happily.

* * *

><p>"Marlene!" James called. "I got a dog!"<p>

"Oh, hey James. What's his name?" Marlene asked, kneeling down next to Padfoot.

"Padfoot," James replied. "Oh damn—Padfoot, get your paw out of there!"

Padfoot paused with a paw inside Marlene's shirt, peering up at James with innocent eyes.

"Uh, James? What is your dog doing?" Marlene asked uncertainly as Padfoot settled himself in her lap, licking the side of her face and dripping saliva into her ear.

"PADFOOT!" James yelled. "Get up, now."

"Aa-roo," he said, refusing to move.

"Padfoot," James warned.

"James, I'm going to kill you," Marlene gagged as a paw disappeared into the waistband of her jeans.

James threw out the last card he had. "Padfoot, if you don't get up now, then no dinner for you!"

At the prospect of a hungry evening, Padfoot got up, whimpering. Marlene ran away, and James thought he heard her say to Alice, "I just got molested by James' dog!"

"That was not funny, Padfoot," he told the dog.

"Aaaa-rooo," Padfoot chortled.

* * *

><p>"Hello, Professor McGonagall," James waltzed into her office, Padfoot in his wake.<p>

She looked up from her paperwork, startled. "Goodness, Potter, what is that animal doing with you?" she asked. Padfoot grinned at her, drool gathering on the carpet. "Get it out at once!"

"But won't you say hello at least?" James asked. "He's harmless!"

"Absolutely not, Potter."

"Please!"

"Hello, dog. There you go, get it out now."

"Minnie doesn't like you," James said in a loud whisper to Padfoot as they turned around. McGonagall sighed. "Well, let's go then, Pad—PADFOOT, NO!"

McGonagall was lying on the floor, with the heavy black dog on her chest, frantically licking her face. James groaned in horror.

"A hundred points from Gryffindor," she said in a weak voice. "And detention for both you and the dog!"

Then she fainted.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Toppyrocks, are you the one who dared me to write this? Where someone gets a pet and absolute chaos ensues? If yes, then I hope you liked it. If not, then whoever dared me this, I hope you liked it too. Anyone here want to waste ten minutes of their lives to read a potentially terrible songfic about RoseScorpius, then facepalm, and write a potentially deadly review? It's my first time writing Next Gen so it probably will suck.**

**~Gella**


	62. The Small Stand In The Back

Lily liked to visit flower shops, especially the one near her house. She went there every day. She would skip right past the lilies, past the roses, past the hydrangeas, past the hyacinths, towards the small stand in the back. Towards the petunias.

Every time she came, the lilies stand would be empty; the roses stand being refilled on an hourly basis, the hyacinths and hydrangeas gone, purchased by shy lovers on a first date. But the small stand in the back never changed. No one cared to forage that deep into the small store; no one cared that the petunias were yearning for the attention and affection the other flowers received. No one cared that the elderly shopkeeper would get up, in the wee hours of the morning, to tend to every flower in her store, even the petunias. But she, like everybody else, neglected the small stand in the back. The trumpet-shaped flowers, once vibrant and beautiful, were now barely on the line between living and wilting, nourished by the last drops of water in the can. The small stand in the back stood in its corner, pushed to the side by all sorts of trinkets and collector's items, frail and forgotten.

But not by Lily. Every day, she would come in, and head straight towards the small stand in the back. The shopkeeper marveled at her persistence, and decided, for this lovely young girl, to start caring for the petunias again. But it was too late. The small blooms were dry and withered, gone forever. No matter how much the shopkeeper went at it, with fertilizer and water, with new pots and seeds, there was no coming back for them. While the other flowers thrived and glowed, the small stand in the back slowly became nothing.

While Lily thrived and glowed, Petunia's heart and soul were dark with bitterness. Too late, her family realized the cause of her hostility, and tried to persuade her to come back. No matter how much they pleaded, for her to let go of her jealousy, that she was just as special as her sister, there was no coming back. She was sucked too deep into the waves of anger, of spite, of envy, and there was no coming back from that.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hey. Just wanted to say I love you all, with all my heart. I never thought I'd make it this far, with drabbles like these, but…five hundred reviews? I love you. PureAwesomeness13, I award you the award of the award of being my 500<strong>**th**** reviewer. And remember, I love you. Every single one of you. **

**~Gella**


	63. Just a Bit

It was third year when I fell for James Potter.

I know, I know, you've all read the version where I hated him years one through six, and after him deflating his head—accurate choice of words there—I started to see past the stupidity and arrogance and yada yada yada. The books say that, the fanfictions say that, everyone say that.

That's wrong.

Third year was the year that I realized…well, not out of the blue, I assure you, like so many of you put in your stories. It didn't randomly hit me one day how much I loved the hot, muscular Quidditch captain. It didn't suddenly come to me that he's suddenly matured over the summer. Because he wasn't nearly as hot, and certainly not muscular. And he was still stupid, still arrogant, still _so_ bloody immature. He was scrawny too. The muscles came later.

But yes, third year was the year. It wasn't like Sirius planted a love potion in my food; it wasn't like my parents passed away and only he was there for me; it wasn't like anything what your fanfictions say, except one thing. Take a story, any story, that's set in our seventh year. Take the angst, the romance, the pranks, everything, and imagine that year to be our third year. Only then will you get the idea of what really happened. I slowly and gradually, with much persuasion from his friends and mine, realized that, yes, I, Lily Evans, was in love with James Potter. At first my reaction was just like what many of you wrote. Then, they changed, again like what you wrote. Through and through, no outside force—the death of my parents, the stupidity of Sirius, et cetera—brought us together. None except our own feelings for each other.

But, you ask, what happened then?

Well, I was always a logical, sensible person, even when it came to love. Too many pranks, too many detentions, too much time with him and not enough to study, too many flunked tests told me what was happening. No longer was I the straight-laced student that the teachers loved, their favorite. In their eyes, I was the fifth delinquent, the fifth Marauder.

If I hadn't been so focused, so rational, then Lily Evans the know-it-all might have disappeared off the face of this earth. Lily Evans the Marauder would have been in her place instead. But I wanted the prefect badge so, so much. I wanted to receive praise and points in class, instead of Professor McGonagall's tired look of disappointment. I did the only thing I could possibly do. It was quick and clean, a simple statement, not drawn out or slow. I liked to think that, that way it would've saved him from more pain. Didn't pulling out a tooth hurt less when it was a fast, short tug? Again, logic was my downfall.

I should've done it slower, more gradually. I should've left him the way I came to be with him. I should've given him time to adjust to my turned back and my cold words. I should've done something else, _anything_ else, than what I did.

"I don't love you. I never have and I never will."

Those words. I would give anything to take back those words. I knew it, as soon as they were out of my mouth, that I should give him a kiss, and tell him that I was just joking, reassure him that I would never leave, that I would always love him. But I didn't. I turned away to hide my tears and my lie. I broke his heart. Just like that.

I distanced myself from James Potter. I put behind the best times of my life. I returned to my books and essays. I never once looked back. Outside, I was back to my bookworm, rule-loving ways, back to the teacher's pet. Inside, I was as broken as him.

We never showed it, not even to our dearest of friends. He still drank, still pulled pranks, still the star Chaser, still every girl's dream man. To everyone else, I was still the object of his desires. No one really knew what happened between us, not even Marlene and the Marauders, except for Sirius. Oh, how he hated me after that. He screamed at me. He got in my face. He even slapped me. I never wavered, never cried. What he did, I deserved.

I got my badge. My Gryffindor prefect badge that I had strived for since first year. A meaningless piece of metal, now that I think about it. Why had I wanted this so much? Why did I throw away my Marauders, my James, for this? Why?

It took everything I had and more to look him in the eye in fifth year, to see the hurt and the anger that was still there, even now. This time, those hazel pools were no longer warm with love. They were hard with hate, with wrath. He put on the charade of pursuing me, I returned with mine of rejecting him. I'm sure you all know how I ran away crying, after Severus called me a Mudblood. To be honest, I barely heard that. I just couldn't take it anymore, to know that _I_ did this. _I_ took the light in his eyes. _I_ doused the spark in his soul. _I've_ made him this confused, damaged corpse of a man that I loved so much.

Seventh year came. Imagine my horror when I discovered my fellow Head. I couldn't bear to look at him. I couldn't bear to see the scars I left on him. Scars that never healed. Having classes with him was terrible enough, but now I had to live in the same tower as him, patrol with him, and in every way, become _one_ with him. How could I do that when it was I who shattered him for the first time? It was as if the guilt was eating me from the inside, leaving a gaping hole that ached, day and night, never ceasing, a cancer of the worst kind.

In a way, we were both gone. Gone over the chasm of despair. Somehow, in the suffocating darkness, we found each other again. It wasn't easy, but we healed together. We found light together. I took his face in my hands and told him everything and everything and everything. I told him I never stopped loving him. I begged him to forgive me. He answered by pressing his lips to mine. In that moment, everything between us cleared. All the hatred, all the misery, gone. Just like that. Logic told me to break away. It told me what happened in third year will happen again. I ignored it. Nothing will ever get between us ever again, not even logic.

Sometimes I think. I think as I hug Sirius at our graduation. I think as I gaze at the ring on my left hand. I think as I caress the bulge in my stomach. I think when I feel his lips brush the top of my head. I think even logic must like James Potter a bit.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Dammit, how did this turn out to be so Twilight-esque? Hmm. I think I like it. Just a bit. <strong>

**~Gella**

**PS: Check out HeirOfHufflepuff394's Dramione fic. She needs some sirius (mental) help. **


	64. It's Tunia!

"Sirius! C'mere—no no not there, _here_! Ah yes—no, not quite. A little to the left, maybe—"

"Why don't you put it there yourself then?"

"Hey, you two! Where does this sign go again?"

"Right there, on the door, Mars. It says, 'here is the door', you know."

"Remind me why we need a sign pointing out the door?"

"Because, Alice, you are a bunch of dimwitted idiots—dammit, woman, I was joking!"

"Shut up and get on with the work!"

"Yes, Dorky, ma'am."

"Be quiet! And don't call me Dorky!"

"All right, all right, keep your hair on. Oh, right, James, how's she going to know where to come?"

"Good question, Padfoot. Why don't you solve it then get back to me on that?"

"What—?"

"Banner, check, cake, check, flowers, check. Are we missing anything?"

"Yeah, the guest of honor herself. Get cracking on that, Pads!"

"—the hell? How do you expect me to—?"

"Wait, Alice, are you sure this is her favorite flavor? If it's not—"

"I'm _sure_, James."

"—then I've still got time to run down to the kitchens—"

"I am sure, James Potter!"

"Are you positive? Negative? Orientated?"

"_What_ the hell, James—"

"Shh! Do you hear anything?"

"All I hear is your blabbing in my ear. Couldn't you have at least picked a bigger room?"

"Shut it, Sirius. I think she's here."

"Yeah right—"

"Shh!"

"Alice, you're on my foot."

"And your elbow is squishing my nose!"

"SHH!"

"Jesus, James. I've got your spittle coating the inside of my ear now, thanks—"

"James, mate, Lily isn't out there."

"Yeah, you're right. Back to work, everyone!"

"Honestly, James?"

"And I thought Marlene was emotional…"

"Oi!"

"STOP IT YOU'RE RUINING THE PICTURE!"

"What pic—oh, ohh! Sorry, James!"

"James—you want a tissue?"

"You ruined it! Ruined it!"

"Sweet mum of Merlin, James. What's so important what the picture? It looks like a red-faced gibbon with green grapes for eyes—"

"THAT WAS MY GODDAMN PRESENT TO HER, BLACK!"

"Present to who?" A new voice asked.

The door opened, unfolding a truly spectacular sight—literally. James froze, one hand clenched around a dripping canvas and the other about to punch his mate in the face. A tottering cake that brushed the speckled ceiling dominated most of the small space, with a few presents squeezed in to the right. Everyone else was barely standing in the room, and Remus, pressed in the back corner, almost shot out when Lily opened the door.

The birthday girl surveyed the scene in front of her with a half-amused, half-weary expression. She raised her eyebrow at the lily that fell from the window and landed upside down on Marlene's head. Then her gaze shifted to the cake. Her eyes widened.

"Um, James? Watch out…"

His eyes flicked up to the wobbling monstrosity a second too late. As he struggled in the glutinous chocolate frosting, Lily picked up the drawing thoughtfully.

"Red feathers…green eyes…Oh, my Merlin, James drew me Tunia! That's so kind of him!" she hugged it to her chest, running to the Owlery. "Look, Tunes! It's you!"

**AN: Happy birthday, Lily! You've got grandchildren, do you know? And happy birthday to my own mother as well, **_**you**_** haven't got grandchildren yet, sorry. You will, one day, though. Hopefully. **

**~Gella**


	65. The Game

Sirius sat down, putting his feet on the table.

"What, Black?" Lily asked before Sirius could even open his mouth.

"You have just lost the game," he told her.

"Game? What game…?"

"You have just lost the game," he repeated.

"What game!"

"You just lost it."

"What. Bloody. Game."

"You have just lost the game," he said one last time before running away. Lily's scream faded behind him, echoing throughout the school:

"_WHAT GAME_?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Ahaha, now you've lost the game too! And me…<strong>

**~Gella**

**PS: Hooray for 69 chapters ;) **


	66. Planet Project

**AN: Now, this is usually one of those cute oneshots where there's this description along the lines of "Lily and the Marauders are doing an Astronomy project. This is what happened" or whatever, but since I have a drabble fic at the ready…here we go.**

* * *

><p><strong>Monday:<strong>

"As we are finishing up the unit," the Astronomy professor, Professor Allume-Seins trilled in her high, disgustingly sweet voice, "I thought we'd do something fun to end it." She paused here for effect, her already ample chest swelling even more.

"Fun?" Lily muttered darkly. "Anything fun in her mind involves glitter and lace."

"We're doing a planets project!" the professor clapped her little hands excitedly. The class looked dully back. "Oh, cheer up, you great radishes."

"Did she just call us radishes?" James demanded. "I thought there were more students in this class than just Lily." Said Lily glared at him. Their teacher gave a fake simper.

"You'll be working in groups of two, each group with one planet or star as its subject. You shall make a poster, or write a paper, or something, and we'll be presenting on Friday." She looked expectantly around at them all. On cue, the students started to move around, finding their partners and discussing what they wanted as a topic.

"You know what we should do?" Sirius asked James immediately. "Go on, take a guess."

"Sirius, I know what you want to do," James grinned. Then he looked awkwardly at Peter and Remus. "Erm…"

To save him further trouble, Remus hurriedly said, "that's all right, me and Peter can work together."

"Thank Mer—" Sirius said in relief. James stepped on his foot. Eyes watering, he changed his tack. "Thanks, Remus, mate."

"Let's get to it, then!" James eagerly scribbled down some ideas, leaving Peter and Remus to look at each other.

"Er…" Peter cleared his throat. "I suppose we could do Mercy…"

Remus resigned himself to his fate, silently adding in his head that it was _Mercury_. "Yeah, let's get started on that…"

-x-

"How about Venus?" Marlene asked. "Goddess of beauty and all that."

"Goddess of beauty?" Lily wrinkled her nose. "That sounds like something _she_ would do."

"Yeah, you're right. Then what about a star? We could do the star Sirius…" her blue eyes misted over.

Lily sighed. "You know he'll hate that."

"Good point. Ugh, this is hard!" She looked over at her friend. "What do you think?"

"I dunno, I sort of like Jupiter," Lily said thoughtfully. "He's the king of gods. He must've been _so_ powerful…"

"Jupiter it is, then. You know, Lily," Marlene said, "sometimes I wonder if you should have been a Slytherin instead, with that little devious, power-hungry mind of yours."

"Please," Lily snorted. "I'm not that thick, am I? Don't answer that," she added hastily.

Marlene smirked. "Well, I sure hope James likes being told what to do."

-x-

"'…closest to the sun, yet not the hottest,'" Remus read from their textbook while Peter doodled on a bit of parchment, drool pooling at the corner of his mouth. Remus looked upwards, then set to work again, wondering what he could've possibly done wrong in another life to deserve this.

-x-

"What're you two doing?" Lily asked, lingering by James and Sirius' table. "Wait, don't even—"

"We're doing Uranus," James grinned, high-fiving Sirius.

Lily rolled her eyes. "'Course you are."

-x-

"Uranus was the most ancient of the Roman gods," James told Sirius, and the pair sniggered. "And it's got 27 seven moons, Titania being the largest, and others such as Oberon, Umbriel, Miranda, and Ariel—oi, are you writing this down?"

Sirius looked up from his drawing of a bum wearing a crown of holly leaves, labeled 'UrAnus'. "We should put this on our poster board," he suggested as James roared in laughter.

"Brilliant, but no," James said after he recovered. "I want it on my wall instead."

-x-

"Mercury is also the only planet in our solar system with virtually no atmosphere at all," Remus talked aloud as he worked. Soft snores floated from Peter's direction. Remus went on. "It's mostly made of iron and rock. Much like your head," he added to the asleep Peter.

-x-

"Jupiter is very gaseous," Lily said, eyes skimming the text and ignoring the snickers from James and Sirius, "and it's got the most known moons. That's something we could add," she said, writing it down. "Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, all discovered by Galileo Galilei, in 1610."

"And it's the first of the gas giants—" she threw her boyfriend a look as they burst into new giggles, "and has three known rings. Excellent. We'll do more tomorrow."

**Tuesday:**

"Poster or paper?" Lily asked.

"Poster," Marlene replied with a shudder. "I don't like writing papers."

"Suit yourself," Lily got to the front of the room and grabbed a poster board. "We can put the diagram of Jupiter here, and the stuff about its surface _here_…"

-x-

"Definitely poster," James decided. "Did you know that Uranus was discovered by William Herschel?"

"Must've been a brave bloke, that one."

"Indeed."

-x-

"Paper, yeah?" Remus asked the non-present Peter. "Yes, Remus, of course, whatever you say."

He then glanced furtively around the room, to see if anyone had spotted him talking to himself. Nobody even noticed the thin, pale boy, too caught up in the excitement of the project. Remus sighed his first sigh that day; no doubt he would again.

-x-

"Uranus is barely visible with the naked eye but easily seen with a telescope." James finished, flipping the page, and happened to glance at his partner. "Um, Sirius? Do you think you can deflate your arse a bit?"

"You did say that it was barely visible," Sirius reminded him, but returned it to normal proportions after a horrified look from Lily. "Jamie boy's is bigger," he told her turned back.

-x-

"Remind me why we're using glue again," Lily said through clenched teeth, glowering murderously at the strands of hair that got stuck in the wet puddle yet again.

"Oh, Lily," Marlene laughed. "You really ought to cut your hair, it's getting in the way."

"Good idea," she said, yanking free. "In fact, I'll do it tonight."

"I was joking!" Marlene protested. "Oh, what have I done?"

**Tuesday (nighttime):**

Yet another cluster of hair fell. The piece of cardboard on the ground already carried a whole headful of red strands, and still Lily was shearing away ruthlessly. James winced with every sharp _snip_, watching his Lily transform before his eyes. After a few trims here and there, Lily finally set down her scissors. With a bright smile, she turned to her audience, one hand automatically reaching to brush hair behind her ear. When her fingers found nothing but empty air, she froze, scrabbling frantically at her head. She grabbed a mirror, green eyes wide.

A shrill shriek torn the common room apart. Parchment cracked and ink bottles spilled; the fireplace spluttered and almost went out; and the Gryffindors unplugged their ears after a few minutes when the horrific noise finally stopped.

"My hair!" Lily was gasping. "My lovely, long, hair! Where did it go?"

"You cut it," James reminded her. Lily whirled around, falling to her knees besides the red pile. With shaking hands, she scooped some up, cradling it and whimpering.

"No!" she wailed. "Why did I do this? Why?"

"I dunno," James shrugged. "Oh no—don't cry, Lily!" He looked around wildly. Lily was practically sobbing in his arms now. "Marlene? Sirius! Dumbledore! Anyone!"

"My hair!" Lily cried, hands outstretched as James half-dragged, half-carried her away.

"It's just hair!" he said desperately. "It's nothing to cry about!"

"But it's gone!"

"And it'll grow back, won't it? Now get up, and show the world your new look."

Lily sniffed bravely. "Right. I'll get up—and show—the world—"

With that, she fell asleep, still murmuring. James breathed a sigh of relief.

**Wednesday:**

Despite James' words of wisdom the night before, Lily was still in depression the next morning.

"It looks great, Lily!" Marlene told her. "You shouldn't be afraid to try new things!"

"I know," Lily scowled at her reflection. "But it's just…I felt like I lost my best friend, you know?"

"Of course," Marlene responded stiffly. Realizing the gravity of her words, Lily hurried to amend,

"Oh, Mars, you _know_ what I mean!"

"I know," Marlene shrugged. "It's just…you're sort of sounding like her now."

Lily's eyes grew wide. "I am?"

Marlene nodded to confirm. "You are."

Lily ground her teeth. "Dammit, I love my new haircut! And it'll grow back in time. I'll just have to deal with it then." Lily looked at her real best friend. "That better?"

"Loads," Marlene grinned at her. "Now come on, the poster isn't going to make itself, you know."

-x-

"I should do something," Peter mused as Remus' quill flew across the parchment. "I feel like you're doing all the work, Remus."

"It's fine," Remus mumbled, barely listening. "I don't care, really."

"But still! I feel bad…"

"It's all right," Remus more or less growled. "Just—just look for anything important—here." Remus flicked the heavy textbook at him, with perhaps a bit too much verve. Peter went flying backwards, straight into Sirius and James' poster.

"Peter!" James hauled him off, staring in shock at the big dent in their foam model. "You ruined our anus!"

"I'm sorry!" Peter moaned. "Is there anything I can do?"

"You can start by putting my anus back in place, for starters—no no no get away from me! What are you doing?" Sirius jumped up as Peter approached him, hands ready.

"You said to put your anus back in place." Peter answered, reaching for Sirius' bum.

Sirius looked around hysterically. "Er…oh! Look! A butterfly!"

Peter abandoned Sirius' behind, looking up in interest. "Where?"

"Right—right about there. Go find it Peter, before it's gone forever!" Sirius urged.

"Okay!" He trotted a short distance, head bobbing in confusion. "I don't see it."

"Ah, shame," Sirius said carelessly. "It must've flown away."

"B-but—" Peter's eyes filled up with tears. "It was my butterfly!"

"Yes, yes, I'll get you a butterfly for your birthday, Petey boy," James soothed.

Peter's small eyes lit up. "You will?"

James nodded. "I will, don't you worry about it."

"Oh, thank you James!"

"Yeah, yeah," James tried to look modestly pleased. "Nothing at all."

-x-

"Are you done already?" Lily asked Remus, who was reading quietly. He looked up, smiling.

"Yes. While Peter was off chasing that non-existent butterfly—"

"You mean it wasn't there?" Peter sniveled. "But Sirius said it was there!"

"—I finished the last few sentences."

"So it wasn't there?"

"Wow, Remus, you're fast," Lily said.

"It wasn't there!"

"Thanks," Remus replied, turning back to his book and trying not to notice James' glare of jealousy.

"SIRIUS LIED TO ME!"

-x-

"Merlin, Peter," Sirius whispered, casting a glance over his shoulder. "Calm down, mate. It's just a butterfly!"

"You told me it was there!"

"And I'm going to get you one for your birthday, remember?" James sad urgently.

Peter sniffled one last time, wiping the tears from his eyes. "Thanks James."

"It's all right, Pete. Get back to your work now, there's a good boy."

As Peter stumbled away, James turned to Sirius, a new kind of anxiety in his eyes.

"When's his birthday again?

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Yay for horrible ending! Next part coming up soon!<strong>

**~Gella**


	67. Planet Project Part II

**Thursday:**

"I'm screwed, I'm screwed, I'm screwed," James blabbed. "Oh Merlin, I am so screwed."

"Why?" Sirius yawned.

"Look. At. Our. Poster."

Sirius looked at the blank surface. "So?"

"What day is it today?"

"Thursday, right?"

"When is the project due?"

"Friday."

"Keep on going..."

It took Sirius a while to get it. "Oh."

"I'm screwed."

"Don't worry, mate," Sirius patted him on the shoulder. "We're in this together."

-x-

"All done!" Lily sat back, admiring their poster. "Wow, I never knew you were this good at drawing, Mars. The Jupiter looks almost exactly like the one from the book!"

"Maybe that's because I traced it from the book?"

"In that case, never mind,"

-x-

"I'm screwed, I'm screwed, I'm screwed."

"Sirius! Snap out of it! Where did all our notes go?"

"I'm screwed."

"You will be," James growled, "if you don't shut up."

"I'm s—"

"SIRIUS!"

"We're in this together, right?"

-x-

"Mr. Lupin, are you and Mr. Pettigrew finished?"

Remus jerked out of his snooze to discover a large expanse of black fabric hovering above his face. Unfortunately for him, that large expanse of black fabric happened to be his teacher's robes, which—just barely—clothed a large expanse of flesh. He jumped up, and found his face stuck in the deep recess of that large expanse of flesh. With a firm tug on her part, he and the professor separated, and he picked his books off the floor amongst snickers and wolf-whistles from his classmates. Face burning, he chanced a look at James and Sirius, who both flashed him a thumbs-up. He turned back to the professor, swallowing.

"Um," he cleared his throat. "Um, yes, Professor."

"May I see it?"

Remus pulled out the paper that was the result of teamwork between him and his quill. The professor's eyes skimmed over it quickly, and seemed to have nothing to critique.

"Very well, Mr. Lupin. Next time, however, take care to not fall asleep in my class."

He let out a breath of relief. The gossip and laughter, though, didn't stop. He Transfiguring a pair of earplugs, figuring he would need it. He was right.

-x-

"Nice one, Remus," James grinned. "My God, did you see the look on Dominic Jordan's face? He'd probably kill to have been you…"

"Shut up, James." Remus mumbled, the tips of his ears still rather warm.

"A bit unorthodox of him though, isn't it," Sirius commented. "To fancy a teacher?"

"So it's not unorthodox the other way around?" Lily asked, giving James a sly look.

James went red. "Shut up, Lily."

-x-

Lily stared at James and Sirius' empty poster. "Is this…all?"

"Yes," Sirius sighed. "I'm screwed."

"Yeah, you are. You see, class ends in two minutes. It's due tomorrow. Screwed is right."

"We're in this together," James reminded Sirius. "We'll fail this one together."

"We're screwed."

**Friday:**

"First group to present—any volunteers? Thank you, Miss Evans. Second group? James and Sirius, of course. Third? How about you, Lupin? Fourth one, Longbottom and Thomas…"

"I sure hope you're ready," Lily said to James. He grinned broadly.

"Don't worry. We are. I think."

"Nah, we're still screwed."

-x-

"This is the planet Jupiter," Lily announced brightly. "It is the first of the gas giants, and has a diameter of one hundred forty-two thousand, nine hundred and eighty-four kilometers."

"It is seven hundred seventy-eight million kilometers from the sun," Marlene said, "and is about three hundred eighteen times our planet's mass."

Lily picked up, "As you can see from this drawing here, there is an ongoing, hurricane-like storm, called the Great Red Spot. You can fit two Earths in there."

"That's big!" Sirius exclaimed, trying not to laugh. James responded, like they'd rehearsed this—which they probably did, come to think of it—in a loud voice,

"That's what she said!"

Lily raised her eyebrows as the female population of class, teacher included, burst into raucous laughter. "Honestly," she complained in a low voice to Marlene, who nodded in sympathy.

"Of course _she_ would," the blonde muttered back. "Anyway, Jupiter has the most moons, 49, and the biggest is—" she broke off, looking with intense distaste at the giggling professor, who still haven't recovered from James' little jibe. "_Silencio_!"

All the laughter stopped. The witches opened their mouths furiously, but no sound came out. Marlene glared around the room, as if daring someone to break free of her spell. Nobody did. "Thank you," she said lightly, pocketing her wand. "Now, as I was saying…"

-x-

"And that concludes our presentation. Thank you very much." Marlene lifted the charm and walked the poster to Allume-Seins' desk. Looking her squarely in the eye, she added, "And thank _you_, Professor."

Lily's mouth dropped at this open display of boldness; it fell to the floor when the teacher not only did not take points off for the rude words, but accepted the poster with a curt nod.

"That was awesome," she whispered to her best friend.

Marlene grinned giddily. "I must've been mad to do that."

"Not madness," Lily corrected. "It's the Gryffindor in you."

-x-

"This is Uranus!" Sirius proclaimed grandly. An outbreak of giggles erupted, but quickly died after one look from Marlene.

"We'd love to bore you all half to death with its mass—14.5 times Earth's, by the way—and diameter—that's 51,118 kilometers—and distance from the sun—2,871 million kilometers, that is—and all that, but since we aren't exactly the type, we'll just state some facts here and there and be done about it," James said easily. "Right, Sirius, go ahead, then."

"Did you know that my anus spins on its side?" Sirius said to the room at large.

"I think you mean Uranus, mate," James grinned.

"Oh, right! Yeah, so, did you know that your anus spins on its side? The books says that something huge hit it—"

"Bloody _hell_," Marlene gagged as Sirius slapped James' arse.

"And apparently that made the orbit go all loopy and now, you get—James, what are you doing?"

James stopped wiggling his behind sideways in a disgusted Lily's face and smiled innocently. Sirius turned away, a placating look on his face.

"My mate there needs some help," he whispered loudly, secretly glancing over one shoulder. "Anyway," he continued in a normal tone, "Uranus—yes, I said it—is supposedly the color of the sea, with a north pole sticking out round the front. Now, if your anus looks like that, you might want to get it checked out."

"Moving on! The length of one day on dark, cold Uranus is about 17 hours, and one year is only 84 days, thank Merlin. Its name came from the Greek god of the sky, quite ironically so, and was the husband of Gaia, Mother Earth."

"So technically, an anus and the earth came together and made us who we are today. Innit amazing?"

"And that is the end of this horrible presentation! I hope you were listening, Professor," James said to Allume-Seins—who was as awake and attentive as anyone had ever seen her, "because we haven't got a poster, you see."

"Oh, that's quite all right!" she practically sang. "You two did a _wonderful_ job!"

Lily rolled her eyes. "And she would say that."

"But how did you manage without a poster?" Marlene asked.

The two boys looked at each other, a smirk curling their lips. "It's all part of the deal," they quipped flippantly, high-fiving each other. The girls sighed.

-x-

Remus took one look at the students gathered below him and bolted from the room, looking green. Peter stood alone at the podium, nervously scratching his nose.

"Well, Pettigrew? Why don't you start for us then?"

"Er, um, all right." With a monstrous cough, he set to reading, small eyes trained on the even smaller text. "Mercury…is…the…small—smallest planet, and has a die-am-uh-ter of four hundred—I mean, four dou-sand eight hundred sevendee-five kee-low-me-ters—"

"What?" James leaned forward, one hand cupped around his ear. "Speak up, Pete."

"IT HAS NO MOONS!" Peter bellowed, straining his voice. "AND WAS NAMED FOR THE ROW-MEN MESSENGER GOD! Its mass is only fifdee-five percent of Earth's—" his voice gave out. "May I go get some water?" he croaked.

Professor Allume-Seins unplugged her ears rubbed her temples. "Yes, yes, get out of here. Ah, Lupin! Thank Merlin—I mean, thank you for your timely reappearance. If you feel well enough to read, would you—"

Remus moved forward, reading rapidly. "The length of one day on Mercury is 59 Earth days, and the length of one year is 88. It has no atmosphere, and is the only planet to not. Temperatures during the day can reach up to 467 degrees Celsius, but at night they may plunge down to negative 170 degrees. The surface of the planet, such as its valleys, craters, and other physical features, has been mapped quite thoroughly, with a notable name, usually a composer or writer, although some names are derived from either Roman or Greek mythology. Some include Shakespeare, Beethoven, Vivaldi, Michelangelo, Vyasa, Lermontov, Rowling, Strindberg, Homer, Hawthorne, Botticelli, Proust, Praxiteles, Chaikovskij…"

-x-

"How long do you reckon this will go on?" Sirius whispered to James, who studied their friend closely ("Bach, Titian, Ibsen, Mena, Phidias, Harunobu, Mickiewicz, Rudaki, Polygnotus, Bello, Petrarch,")

"About another ten minutes or so," he whispered back.

"You're on," Sirius grinned, mentally congratulating himself for the five Galleons that will soon be in his pockets. Remus kept reading.

-x-

Lily gave up on trying to concentrate. No one even noticed when she stole out of the room and returned a few minutes later with her Charms textbook and a new scroll of parchment. Marlene slumped on the table, eyes glazed and tapping her fingers rhythmically on the wood. Remus kept reading.

-x-

A footsie war started. Remus kept reading, completely oblivious to the loud whispers—"Marlene! That was my foot!" "Sorry! It felt manly—" "You're calling my foot manly?" "HA! Gotcha, Lily." "Oh no you didn't James Potter—!"—and occasional gasps of pain: "Goya, Tyagaraja, Wang Meng, Matisse, Renoir, Valmiki, Bartok, Schoenberg, Smetana, Schubert…"

-x-

Sirius was snoring noisily and unabashedly.

James' mouth was hanging open, a thin line of drool dripping onto his robes.

Lily's textbook was her pillow, and Marlene was inhaling her ink. And Remus kept reading.

And reading.

And reading.

And reading.

And reading.

And reading.

Until finally, he stopped after the last sentence. He placed the parchment on the professor's desk and left the silent classroom.

"That was a really weird dream," he said to himself. "Sirius and James were actually _quiet_…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Yeah, I tried to make the informational part interesting, really I did. But, let's face it, it turned out to be anything but that. Ah well. This should've been a multichappy story anyway. Note: Allume-Seins is mine; she's the OC professor in my other story, so I used her.<strong>

**~Gella**


	68. James Is Screwed

"I'm screwed, James blabbed. "I'm screwed, I'm screwed, I'm screwed. I am _so_ screwed!"

"Why?" Lily asked curiously. "You didn't get another detention, did you?"

"No, it's something far worse," James moaned. "Oh Merlin, I'm—"

"—screwed, I know," Sirius interrupted. "But why?"

James glanced around the classroom, and motioned for his best mate and Lily to lean closer.

"I've been asked out," he told them in a whisper. Lily rolled her eyes and Sirius snorted.

"You've been on more dates than me and Lily combined, mate. Why is this one different?"

"Well, guess who it is."

"Who?"

"You're supposed to guess, stupid!"

"I know that, stupid and I don't want to guess. Just tell us!"

James took a deep breath. And glanced around the room once more. And huddled deeper with the two of them. And took another deep breath.

"Anytime today will be good, James," Lily sighed.

"The professor."

Lily stared.

Sirius stared.

James nodded.

"She's finally done it, huh," Sirius said.

"Of course _she_ would," Lily muttered, exchanging a dark look with Marlene.

"Took her time too," she commented. "When is it?"

"Valentine's Day. In Madam Puddifoot's."

"You're screwed."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is a deleted bit from the previous chapter, I figured it was sort of off-topic if I included it...xD<strong>

**~Gella**


	69. Chaotic Valentine's

Lily knew there was a reason why she hated Valentine's Day. A lot of reasons, actually. But right now, _those_ worries were the least of her worries. Right now, there was one worry far worse than all of those other worries combined. That was Marlene.

"He's going to ask you?" the wide-eyed blonde asked for the fortieth time.

"Yes," Lily responded tiredly.

"And you're going to say yes?"

"Yes,"

"Do you actually _like_ him?"

A tiny nod.

"AHHHHHH!"

"Sweet mum of god, Marlene," Lily hissed. "Keep it down, will you?"

"Sorry, but I thought you said you actually liked James Potter."

"I did."

"Seriously?"

"…Yes…"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

><p>"He's going to ask you?"<p>

"Yes."

"And you're going to say yes?"

"Yes."

"Do you actually like him?"

"Oh _hell_ no!"

"Oh, thank Merlin."

* * *

><p>"He's going to ask you?"<p>

"No."

"And you're going to say yes?"

"No."

"Do you even like him?"

"Yep."

"Wait. _What_?"

* * *

><p>"He's going to ask you?"<p>

"Yes."

"And you're going to say yes?"

"No."

"Do you even like him?"

"No."

"Oh, okay."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! Or National Forever Alone Day, whichever one you celebrate. For me, it's the second one, all the way. Who needs relationships when you have Harry Potter? <strong>

**~Gella-who-is-forever-alone**


	70. Valentine Truth Is

**Lily Evans: **

Valentine truth is! Like:)

**Marlene McKinnon**,** Sirius Black**, **James Potter**, **Dorcas Meadowes**, and **7 others** like this.

**Sirius Black**: MINE FIRST

**Lily Evans**: No…

**Lily Evans**: Potter, you do realize that I'm not going to do yours, right?

**James Potter**: Pleeeeeeeeeeeease?

**Lily Evans**: Go away.

**James Potter**: :'(

* * *

><p><strong>Lily Evans<strong> – **Marlene McKinnon**: Truth is, you're the best friend anyone can ask for and I love you. Sometimes you and Sirius really get on my nerves though.

**Marlene McKinnon**: Ahaha Lily XD Just wait, one day you and **James** will be the same.

**James Potter**: Someone say my name?

**Lily Evans**: …

**Lily Evans**: I'm leaving this conversation.

* * *

><p><strong>Lily Evans<strong> – **Sirius Black**: Truth is, you're like a brother to me, but I'd really appreciate it if you could stop showing up half-naked in Marlene's bed during some nights…

**Sirius Black**: Aww, thanks Lils :'D Love ya too!

**Lily Evans**: Does this mean the nighttime visits will stop now?

**Sirius Black**: Well, Moony doesn't like it when we shag in my dorm…

**Remus Lupin**: Some people can do without those sounds, thanks.

**Sirius Black**: And it reminds James too much of what he wants to do to you.

**Lily Evans**: You're not my brother anymore -_-

**Lily Evans** – **Remus Lupin**: Truth is, patrolling with you is fun :D I hope you get made Head Boy next year!

**Remus Lupin**: :)

**James Potter**: Seriously, Remmy? That's all you say?

**Remus Lupin**: Well what else am I supposed to say?

**Lily Evans**: Potter, are you stalking me? o_O

**James Potter**: Duh.

**Lily Evans**: I'm going to block you, you creeper.

**James Potter**: At least do my truth is first!

**Lily Evans**: I'm feeling generous today. So fineeee…

* * *

><p><strong>Lily Evans<strong> – **James Potter**: You're disgusting and bigheaded and annoying and you should go bury yourself in a hole and never come back. Now I'm going to block you.

**James Potter**: YOU DIDN'T WRITE TRUTH IS AT THE BEGINNING! I'M THE ONLY ONE WHO YOU FORGOT TO WRITE THAT! I feel special :D

**Lily Evans**: Potter. My patience with you is a rather limited thing

**James Potter**: AND THAT'S THE LONGEST TRUTH IS TOO. OH MY GODric LILY EVANS LIKES MEEEEE :DDDDDDD

**Lily Evans**: -facepalm-

**Marlene McKinnon**: Yeah, James…definitely…

**Alice Dearborn**: I expect a wedding invitation any day now!

**Dorcas Meadowes**: I call being bridesmaid!

**Sirius Black**: And make me godfather of your beautiful firstborn son!

**Remus Lupin**: Guys, leave Lily alone. I'm sitting next to her right now so I'll be the first to suffer if you push her over the edge.

**James Potter**: Oi, what're you doing with my girl, Lupin?

**Lily Evans**: I AM NOT YOUR BLOODY GIRL POTTER

**Lily Evans**: AND WE ARE NOT HAVING ANY CHILDREN TOGETHER

**Lily Evans**: AND I'M GOING TO MURDER TO LOT OF YOU RIGHT NOW

**Lily Evans**: STARTING WITH REMUS.

**Remus Lupin**: What—? Why? I'm innocent! I didn't do anything ;lwer2092;ds.3k

**Lily Evans**: I'm coming for the rest of you now }:)

**Marlene McKinnon**: O_O

**Dorcas Meadowes**: O_O

**Alice Dearborn**: O_O

**Sirius Black**: I'm out, y'all! See ya!

**James Potter**: Why do I have a bad feeling about this?

**Lily Evans**: Oh cool knickers, James. I like the Snitches on there.

**James Potter**: Wait. How do you know what my knickers look like?

**Lily Evans**: …. :)

**James Potter**: O_O

**James Potter**: Lily, calm down—please think about this first—Lily—please—sdj234[]iowemf/';w[r29-=-dsf,n

**Lily Evans**: Nighty-night, Jamie-poo :)

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Truth is, I hate homework. I'm re-learning my other instrument too, so that's definitely helping with updating…oh well. I'll make it through. And there's a long weekend this week too, hopefully I'll get something done then.<strong>

**~Gella**


	71. Wands? Wands

I woke to the sight of the sun. Literally. Someone had pulled open my curtains and all the drapes in the dormitory, leaving the nine o'clock sunshine beamed directly at my face. Judging from the sound of the grumbling around me, I wasn't the only one temporarily blinded by the brightness. I felt around for my wand, then decided against it. I still haven't forgotten how Marlene almost poked my eye out in second year with that grand flourish with hers.

"Where are you all?" I asked, gingerly standing up.

"In hell," Dorcas muttered. "Who did this?"

"And why is it always us?" Alice sighed. "Oof!"

"You all right there, Al?"

"Yeah," she mumbled. "Tripped over something."

Careful to not tread on anything—or anyone, for that matter—I slowly made my way to the window, eyes half-closed. My hands scrabbled at the glass, searching for the scarlet fabric of the thick drapes. I found none.

"Can anyone see yet?" I asked, turning my back on the sun. My eyesight dimmed, then returned, but I suspect the sun's glowing shape will stay on my eyeballs forever.

"They took the drapes!" Marlene gasped. "And our bedside curtains too."

"Now why would someone do that?" Dorcas complained.

"Has anyone got a big piece of cloth?" I asked. "Or anything that we could use to cover the window up with?"

"Would the sheets do?"

"Yeah. Here, I'll use mine." With a sharp tug, I freed my bedsheets from where it was tightly wedged, between the mattress and the frame. "ACH!"

"What happened?" Alice yelled.

"Tripped over something," I muttered back. 'Something' was actually the hem of my sheets. With my recovering sight, I could barely make out the outline of the room. Nonetheless, I managed to make my way to the window without embarrassing myself again. Then came the second dilemma.

"I can't reach the top," I said. "I need a stepping stool or something…"

"You honestly think a stepping stool will make much of a difference?" Mary asked. "More like a chair or a ladder or the lunch table."

"Shut up, Mary. Not everyone has those gorgeous, long legs of yours. Have we got a chair in here?"

"Well, I'm definitely not going to be the one holding it," Dorcas told me. "If you're as graceful on a chair as you are a broom, then I suggest everyone to back up slowly to avoid this natural disaster."

I scowled at her, no easy feat as I had only the faintest clue as to where she was. "Someone get me a chair. And preferably sometime today too."

"You really can't reach it?"

"Yes, Marlene, I'm short, I know. Now isn't the time to rub it in."

"No, I don't think we have a chair. I'll give you a boost."

"Are you sure?" I looked dubious at Dorcas. At least, I turned my head in what I thought was her direction and arranged my features into a dubious-looking position.

"It's better than having you on a chair." I could hear someone stepping towards me. a second later, a pair of arms wrapped around my legs and gave me, as she'd put it, a boost.

"Merlin, this is awkward," Dorcas muttered.

"Just don't tell James and you'll be fine, Dorc."

"Let's hope. Here we are, can you reach it now?"

I groaned as I realized. "I need something to hold it in place," I said desperately. "There might be a roll of Spellotape in my bag…"

"Make it fast. I'm dying down here."

I glanced down at Dorcas. "Oh dear. I really do need to hit the gym, don't I?"

"I…won't say anything discriminating."

Alice hurried towards us, knocking down various items as she came. In her hands, bless her, was my almost used-up roll of Spellotape. But it'll be enough. I hoped. With my teeth, I ripped off a chunk and stuck it on the wall next to the window. It barely held.

"Dorcas, move a bit to your right—keep on going—a little bit more—that's it! No, wait, a few more inches—there! Perfect. Now, don't drop me."

"Whatever happened to 'move a bit'?" she sighed. "And I won't drop you, no matter how tempting it is."

"Thanks." Much to my irritation, the rest of the Spellotape was not enough to hold up the other end, it brought down the first end too. And on top of it all, Dorcas' muscles chose that exact time to give way.

"Dorcas Meadowes!" I cried. "_Why_ would you do that?"

"I'm sorry!" she cried back. "It's not like my arms are made of steel!"

"Never mind all that," Marlene said frantically. "Are you both all right? That was a rather high fall…"

"I'm fine…except that I've bruises where bruises ought not be," Dorcas growled.

"And my head feels like it's been cudgeled, then stomped on by a herd of overweight elephants, but I'm all right as well. What now?"

For a moment, it was quiet. Then, Alice's hoarse voice spoke up.

"Guys…" she held up two pieces of something I couldn't quite identify. I wasn't the only one.

"What's that?" Mary asked. "It looks like a stick, but it's got decorations around it."

"It's—it's my wand," she whispered. "It's broken."

I looked at Dorcas; she looked back at me. Our shoulders slumped.

"Wands," we said together. "Wands."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is the typical scenario where they do all this dangerous work the Muggle way then remember that they indeed are witches and could do magic. I gave Mary a big of personality in this one because I feel she's too soft-spoken in my other chapters, just adding a word here and there and just <strong>_**there**_**. And…oh yeah, dares. I need them, guys. Siriusly. **

**~Gella**


	72. Popping the Question on a Full Moon

James Potter is in a dilemma.

Tonight was supposed to be the night that he proposed to Lily.

Tonight was also the night of the full moon.

And he can't decide between best friend and the love of his life. So, after much consideration, he settled on something that will hopefully work out.

"James?" Lily hissed. "Just where are we going?"

"It's all right," he assured her. "Don't worry."

He heard a dubious sigh, and touched the small box in his pocket once for luck. "Here—watch your head—yeah, there. Go on, now."

"James?" she asked again, voice slightly shaky, "why is that branch above me moving?"

James glanced up and carelessly tossed a small bundle of dark fur onto the ground. Lily gave a small shriek as it scurried towards the sprawling roots, clinging tightly to James' hand.

"That was just Peter," he told her. "Nothing to worry about. See?"

The branches had indeed stopped moving, but that didn't lessen Lily's terror. "Peter?" she gasped. "You mean that's—?"

"Yeah. Now come on. It's almost midnight."

Lily took a deep breath and ducked into the small space. She screamed.

James hastened to shush her, frantically glancing over his shoulder. "Lily, it's okay. That's Sirius."

She reached out a hand hesitantly, then stopped a few centimeters away from the thick black fur. "S-Sirius?"

The huge dog barked in an amiable way, licking her hand and sniffing once. The heavy tail thumped. Lily's face twitched in a feeble smile and gently petted the dog's head. Then she turned to the writhing body in its paws. James heard a sharp intake of breath.

"Please tell me that's not Remus," she breathed, eyes squeezed shut. "James, what is this?"

He crouched in front of her, steadying her, comforting her. "Lily, I know I'm asking a lot—too much of you, but please, just trust me on this. I'll explain later."

"Okay," she said in a small, terrified voice. "I trust you."

James smiled, casting a nervous glance at Remus, who was convulsing feverishly on the ground. "Good. Now. Lily Marie Evans. We've had our share of arguments, but also fun times. You're smart, funny, beautiful. You're the only girl I've ever loved. You're—"

"I'm flattered, James, but shouldn't you worry more about Remus at the moment?"

"Let me finish. Right. You're perfect. I love you. And I hope—"

"James, really—"

"And I hope you love me too!" James was almost yelling now. "So, I, James Charlus Potter—"

"James!"

"—pleads your hand and heart! Will you—"

Remus reared up, batting Sirius aside as if he weighed no more than a feather. The werewolf glared at them with poisonous yellow eyes, its mouth open in a snarl. The keen nose sniffed, zoning in on the two lone humans. Clawed feet thundered towards James and Lily; putrid breath came in sharp snorts.

Sirius threw himself at the wolf, pinning him flat against the ground. They wrestled and tumbled, and the two gaping jaws narrowly missed the couple. A snarl of his own ripped from the dog's throat, and he turned his eyes on James, beseeching. James turned back to a frozen Lily, shielding her from the worst of the danger.

"Will you marry me?"

"Yes, James, yes," Lily sobbed. "I love you and I will marry you!"

James smiled again, a weak, strained smile. "Here's the ring," he said, pressing a small, velvet-covered box into her clammy hands. "And I'm sorry I can't put it on your finger myself—but—"

Lily kissed him. "I don't care," she whispered. "Now go take care of Remus."

"I will," he whispered back. A second later, a tall, majestic stag raced into the fray. Lily smiled tearfully. He was her James, and will always be her James, until the very end.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I like quotes :3 This was supposed to be a parody-y, funny chappy, but lack of sleep does this to me…<strong>

**~Gella  
><strong>


	73. Silence?

**AN: This was the chapter that I told myself I'd stop at when I first published this fic. What? You don't honestly think I plan to uphold that promise to myself, did you? Ahaha, silly reader :'D I suck at keeping any promises anyway.**

* * *

><p>Silence is not commonly associated with the Potter household. Or<em>,<em> Lily thinks in a rather fond manner, the_ Potter-Black-Lupin-Pettigrew _household. So when there is silence…well, it won't be there for long.

"Who just farted?" Sirius asked loudly. "Prongsie, no need to hide it now."

"What?" James cried indignantly. "Lily, I did not fart, don't listen this that—"

"James," Remus said, slightly bemused, "if she's going to object to your flatulence after all this time, then I'm not sure what to tell you."

"Peter! Why'd you fart? And in the kitchen too!"

"_What_?"

Sirius waved at his nose, wrinkling his brow. "Whew, Wormy, that was a stinky one!"

Peter was tearing up. "I didn't fart! Remus, tell these two that I didn't!"

Remus sighed and returned to his book.

"Well then, it must be good ol' Pads who ripped one. Come now, 'fess up," James said heartily. "We're not going to think too badly of you…"

Sirius jumped up in rage. "How dare you, Potter? I most certainly did not fart!"

"Then who did fart?"

"Moony, was it _you_?"

"Huh? What?"

"By God, it was! Remus farted! Remus farted! Remus—"

"Shut up," Lily said.

And the silence returned.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I have absolutely no clue how that came to me. <strong>

**~Gella**


	74. Crazy Little Thing

Red hair, bright green eyes, masses of freckles. Resident know-it-all, the biggest teacher's pet that ever existed. Destined to be prefect, and then Head Girl. Easily the brightest witch in the year, and perhaps even beyond that.

I am Lily Evans.

I turned assignments in early; I read with a passion; I hated anything that went against the rules. I was every professor's favorite. In their eyes, Lily Marie Evans could do no wrong.

Until _him_. James Potter.

Now, look here. I didn't want to befriend him. I didn't want that friendship to turn into a teenage infatuation. I didn't want what blossomed from there. I didn't want anything to do with him and his Marauders. But they all happened anyway.

At first it was only a few slip-ups here and there, and as much as I was astonished that I could make such silly errors, I told myself it would be okay. They were, after all, only small mistakes. Everybody mixed up Io's masses of ice with 'masses of mice', didn't they?

Soon, those mistakes turned into something a little more. Twice was I reprimanded by Professor McGonagall for not paying attention in class. I was only telling James to stop passing notes to me, nothing more!

Then, entire sections on essays or tests would be marked with red ink. I ignored the sinking feeling in my stomach as I looked over yet another paper, ignoring the Acceptable—and sometimes lower—at the top. I'll just study harder next time, I reassured myself.

And then. My first detention. For not turning in an essay that had utterly escaped from my mind, driven out by the pranks and jokes and fun me and James shared. It was the first time. In my entire life. You can imagine how that felt.

_How_ could I have been so blind? How could I have possible overlooked the fact that I was no longer the student I once was? Because every time that happened, I had James and Sirius and Remus and Peter to cheer me up. Somehow, every time I talked with them about anything, it always ended up with the five of us in the kitchens, or the Room of Requirement, or _somewhere,_ somewhere away from my books and parchment. Away from the where I needed to be the most.

But, I didn't care. Their carefreeness completely captivated me. No longer was I bound so strictly to the rules that they totally disregarded. I was actually doing whatever I wanted, with nothing in my way. His Marauders became my best friends. Sirius became my brother. Arrogant, bullying, bigheaded, toerag Potter became James. Oh, I must've broken nearly all the school rules in the first few months with them. It was just so…exhilarating!

…Did I really just tell you all that?

Well.

Blame that crazy little thing called love.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is sort of a side story to my other chapter, Just a Bit. It was <strong>_**supposed**_** to shed a bit more light on how Lily strayed from the straight and narrow, but I think it just made it more confusing xD And I was playing Just Dance 3—best workout game ever, siriusly—and Crazy Little Thing Called Love came on and this…happened. Not based on it in any conscious way, though.**

**~Gella**


	75. Of Course

"Sirius, I love you," Lily said suddenly. Sirius looked up, startled, by this random announcement.

"Er…"

"You're supposed to say 'I love you too, Lily'," she prompted him.

"Okay. I love you too, Lils. Did anything happen between you and James?" he asked.

"No. Why?"

"Because…you're saying you love me."

"And?"

"Girls say crazy things after something happen in their love lives. Trust me, I know."

Lily looked hurt. "So you think it's crazy that I love you?"

"Well, yeah…I mean—"

"Would you prefer if I hated you then?"

"No! It's just—oh never mind. I love you, Lily."

"Thanks." She smiled.

* * *

><p>"You wound him up pretty nicely back there," James congratulated. "That's the one and only thing you're better at than me."<p>

Lily rolled her eyes. "Shut up, James. I really do love him, believe it or not."

"I choose the second option."

"'Course you do."

"Oh yes. Of course I do."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Silly drabble, nothing more :P<strong>

**~Gella**


	76. Lies and Truths

Sirius had been so stupid.

When he was younger, he had an excuse to not think for himself. He had an excuse to mindlessly, instinctively believe the things his family would say, no matter how unbelievable they were. Because that's what obedient little boys did. They listened to their parents and never disagreed. Because that's what obedient, Black boys did.

"Mudbloods are tainting our world," Orion would hiss, throwing down his newspaper.

"Muggles are little more than animals," Walburga would sniff. "We should just kill them all and be done with it."

He hadn't known anything otherwise.

But now…now things were different. Being at Hogwarts, being in _Gryffindor House_, was a breath of fresh air. Oh, how he desperately needed that breath, after being suppressed in complete darkness for so long. And he could no longer ignore the truth.

As much as he wanted to say that his parents were wrong, that Muggleborns _weren't_ tainting their world, that Muggles _were_ better than mere animals, there was a part of him that held on to those long, intense lectures on the importance of blood purity. That part was still a seven-year-old, watching his mother blast aside a homeless man on the streets who had attempted to drag him into a back alleyway. That part was still helping his father and brother decorate the house for the Christmas feast later that night. That part of him was still a child. That part of him wasn't to be seen by anyone else in this world.

Walburga and Orion weren't perhaps the most loving of parents, but they were all he had for eleven straight years. Now, to be thrown so suddenly into the harsh, strange world like this, he wasn't sure what to believe anymore. He hated his family, that was for sure. They'd abused him. They'd lied to him. They'd done a thousand things that no parent should do. But…how many of those lies are lies, and how many of the truths he's now learned are truths?

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy birthday James and Oliver Phelps! And…happy birthday me, I guess…<strong>

**Anyways! Above chapter is Mundung'ed from my songfic, since I've caught a cold and can't seem to think straight to write a decent chapter. I feel terrible for that, because we've hit 600 reviews! AddictedToTheScript is my 600****th**** reviewer, congratulations. And…since I can't put my love for you all into words, I'll leave that bit to your imagination :3 **

**~Gella**


	77. The Hug

"I can't look," Sirius moaned. "Tell me when it's over."

"Oh, for heaven's sake, Sirius! It's going to be cute!" Marlene exploded.

"I'm with Sirius," Remus said grimly. "I still haven't forgotten that time when James thought Lily was going to snog him—"

"And then she ended up slapping him!" Dorcas grinned. "Ah, Merlin, I should've gotten a picture of that…"

"You can get one now," Marlene pointed out. "Sirius, open your eyes already. Your mate's about to get his dearest wish."

"Exactly. He's going to leave behind the bachelor world forever," Sirius snapped. "I'd give anything to go back to those unattached, carefree days."

Marlene turned away frostily.

"What's taking them so long?" Alice hissed, peering down the Gryffindor table at the couple.

"I think Lily's asking him something about that Transfiguration essay…"

Sirius threw his hands up. "Oh, that's wonderful. Homework is the way to a girl's heart then. And I wasted so much money on the roses and chocolates too!"

He didn't notice the dangerous glare Marlene was giving him.

"Wait! Be quiet! I think something's happening!"

"They're probably comparing every single assignment they've gotten in the past six years—"

"They're standing up!" Alice squealed.

"They're walking towards each other!" Dorcas shouted in an ecstatic whisper.

"How? They're sitting across from each other, how do they walk—?"

"Shut up Sirius. OhmyMerlin Lily's actually smiling!"

"Looks more like a grimace to me," Sirius remarked.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAND THEY MADE CONTACT!"

"THEY'RE HUGGING!"

"That is just sickening," Sirius said to Remus while the girls rushed towards their friend. "Now James will always be with _her_ instead of _us_—Remus?"

The other boy hastily wiped away a tear from his eye, blinking rapidly. "What?"

"Murder me now," Sirius groaned.

* * *

><p>"James," Lily hissed, "what are <em>they<em> doing here?"

James followed her gaze down the table, where a cluster of their friends sat, staring expectantly at the two of them. He shrugged. "Probably here to see if you'd chicken out at the last minute or not."

"I still can't believe Black dared me to hug you," she complained. "You do take showers, don't you?"

"Of course!" he cried.

"How often?" she asked.

"Every once two weeks or so—I'm kidding!" he added hastily. "Twice a day."

She exhaled. "Good."

"Yeah."

There was an awkward silence.

"Can I see what you wrote for the last paragraph for the essay for McGonagall today?" Lily asked. "I'm pretty sure I've got the theory right, but just making sure."

"Yeah, here," he dug in his bag and pulled out a grubby scroll of parchment. "I, er, just copied out of the textbook, really…"

"No, this is good," her quill was already flying across her scroll, which was a great deal longer and neater than his. A few moments later, she handed it back to him with a smile.

Their hands touched.

James felt an electric tingle where she touched him. For a moment all he could think of was how soft her hands were and how pretty her smile was. Then, as if someone dumped a bucket of cold water on him, that feeling vanished as she snatched her hand back, clearing her throat uncomfortably. James glanced at Sirius. So did Lily.

"James," she said tersely. "Hug me now."

"I thought you were supposed to hug me?"

"Hug. Me. Now."

"All right."

They hugged.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: True story, bro ;) Actually happened one day at lunchtime for my friend. And it was every bit as awkward and sickening as this was. <strong>

**~Gella**


	78. Best Friend Moving For the Boyfriend

"He's coming," Lily said tensely.

"Up and out, Dorcas," Marlene said brightly.

I sighed and made to move out of my seat yet again, like I've been doing for the past two weeks of Lily and James' slow-blooming relationship. "Potter, I hate you," I said through clenched teeth.

"What was that?" Lily asked distractedly.

"Nothing, nothing…tell me when he leaves." I lifted up my stuff and dropped them with a thud at the other end of the table. "And remind me to not sit across from you ever again."

"You're staying here," Lily ordered.

"Why? I'd just ruin the romantic atmosphere. It's so much better when it's just the two of you."

"You're staying," she repeated, not letting go of my arm. I sighed again.

"She made me," I explained to James, who was sitting—and looking rather at home—in my former seat. "Oh, you're _so_ going to regret making me stay, Lily."

"I know," she muttered.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: My friend makes me happy…because this chapter also came from her and her boyfriend! Merlin, I just hope she isn't reading this…if she is, well, it's been nice knowing you all. <strong>

**~Gella**


	79. The Girl Askes Out the Bloke?

Lily was plotting something, and Sirius knew it. Don't ask _how_ he knew it; it simply came with being on the receiving end of her pranks for seven straight years. Now, when Lily Evans starts to plot something, run for the hills and hide until that inevitable storm passes.

That's what you should do, anyways. But Sirius, being Sirius, didn't do that.

"Hey Lily. Who's going to suffer now?" he asked rather bluntly one day.

She looked up guiltily. "No one," she lied. Sirius looked at her. "Okay, fine, I'll tell you. But you can't tell anyone, all right?"

"All right," he promised, unease evident in his tone.

She glanced around the common room, and her eyes came to rest on James Potter. "No one's going to suffer, not if everything goes according to plan, but it does have something to do with your best mate."

"You liar," Sirius snorted. "If it's got something to with my best mate, then someone—most likely him—w_ill_ suffer."

"No it won't! It's not anything particularly dangerous," she protested.

"Well, it's just that…people have a tendency to get hurt when something you're planning involves them," Sirius said. "I would know."

"Yes, I know, but this isn't like those," she explained impatiently. "Do you know what day it is, Sirius?"

"No clue," he replied. "Why, did you think I did?"

"I should've known," she groaned. "It's the 29th."

A blank look was her response.

"Of February," she prompted. No new flicker of recognition came from Sirius. Lily lost the last vestiges of her strained patience. "It's a leap day, Black! February 29th only comes around once every four years."

"I think I've heard of those before," he said thoughtfully. "Okay, go on?"

She blew a piece of red hair out of her eyes. "And people do strange things on leap days."

"Such as?"

"Such as a girl asking out a bloke," she said. "D'you get it now?"

"No," Sirius answered quite truthfully. Lily chucked a heavy Runes dictionary at him.

"How can you be so thick? I'm going to ask out James today! Do you bloody understand now!"

Sirius returned the volume to her, rubbing his head. "Well, you could've just said so."

"Not a word to anyone, remember," she warned.

"'Course. So, when do you plan to do it?"

"Good question. I think I'll go with right now."

Sirius watched with wonder as she strode purposefully towards James; he still wasn't completely convinced that this wasn't some type of trick and that something horrible is going to happen to James. He didn't need to worry. Lily was the very being of eloquence and fluency itself.

"Potter," she demanded. "You. Me. Hogsmeade date. Tomorrow."

Then she walked away without a backwards glance.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy Leap Day! I was almost born on this day, you know ._. Which means I'd only get to celebrate my birthday every four years. If that isn't a terrible thing, I don't know what is. <strong>

**~Gella**

**PS: This is in their fourth year, if my mental calculations are correct—which they very well might not be, due to my running on less than five hours of sleep and all :3 **


	80. Poor Harry!

A baby's loud cries filled the room. Four other people stood around the cradle, peering curiously down at the small, wrinkly form, straining his small, baby lungs.

"So," Sirius said finally. "This is—what's his name again?"

"Harry James Potter," the father said proudly. "Lily and mine—_our—_beautiful son."

"Doesn't look too beautiful to me," remarked Sirius. "Just covered in slimy stuff and blood."

"Of course he doesn't, not to you," Lily sniffed from the bed. "You've never had a baby before."

"And Merlin forbid that I ever will. I like my manliness the way it is, thanks," Sirius shuddered.

"Be nice to my son, Black," James said wearily, correctly anticipating Lily's next retort, which could lead into an hour-long argument, if correct precautions aren't taken.

Lily subsided—for now. "We haven't decided his godfather yet," she said, more than a bit of suggestiveness hidden in her sugary tone. "What do you say we do it now, James?"

Her husband groaned inwardly; the labor pains had obviously not taken their toll on Lily, and she was confronting the issue that he least wanted to discuss now, and she knew it. Prompted by her deathly sweet smile, he proceeded in halting tones,

"Well," he began, "I was thinking…"

"Go on, honey," she urged him, and her message was clear: you got us into this, you get us out.

He coughed uncomfortably. "I was thinking…erm, Frank, actually."

Everyone, even Lily looked taken aback. "That's, er, very considerate of you, James," she said. "I never knew you two were that close."

"We're the very best of friends," he told her, ignoring the looks the other Marauders were giving him. "We met before Hogwarts, did you know?"

"All right then, if you're decided," Lily said uncertainly. James smiled to himself: he had won this one—for now. The only problem is that, never, in a million years, would he want Frank Longbottom to be godfather of his firstborn son. That man had the worst memory James had ever seen, and quite frankly—no pun intended—he wasn't sure if Frank had gotten the news of the baby yet. Or if he had heard from Alice, it had no doubt already slipped from his mind.

"Where's the document?" James asked. "If there are no objections, I'll fill out the thing right now. Speak now or forever hold your peace, eh?"

Sirius looked at Lily. Lily looked back at Sirius, then looked at Remus and Peter. None of the four looked very happy.

"I'll take that as a no," James said to the silence—even baby Harry had stopped crying, shocked by the prospect of such a depressing future. "Well, here goes."

The rest of the small group could only watch, jaws slack, as James Potter dictated the magic quill to state that Frank Augustus Longbottom is now the godfather of Harry James Potter. When the formal exchange was finished, he sealed the scroll with a fresh drop of wax and looked up at them all.

"Damn you, Potter," Sirius groaned. "Poor Harry!"

Lily said nothing; the throes of childbirth had finally done their role. Either that or she'd fainted.

Remus and Peter were now murmuring consolations to the shell-shocked infant, reassuring him that they would do everything in their power to 'stop Godfather Frank from corrupting you'. Harry stared back at them bravely, despite the mess of a future he's sure to have.

James watched the entire scene with a sick feeling in his stomach, realizing for the first time what he had done.

"Fuck."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Harry's birth, for Blue Luver5000. Don't ask me how Sirius turned out to be godfather, I didn't plan that bit xD And since people do strange things on leap days (even if it was yesterday), I shall contribute to that aspect also! I haven't done these…in a long time…<strong>

**Lady Elizabeth of New York: I was originally going to include James jumping up and down in joy, but then that'd lead into their actual date, and I didn't want to write that much. I'm lazy. **

**Wingswordsandmetaphors: Ah, but Lily said that no one will get hurt if it goes according to plan, but since Sirius' meddling wasn't part of the plan, he received a lump on his head for his trouble. **

**Saphy18: Your friend has a great opportunity at his/her disposal! Walk into a doctor appointment and tell them your 'actual' age xD **

**Angie Kangaroo: Come to think of it now, I might do a chapter of his reaction when she does the same thing…on April Fool's Day! **

**Skaterofthebooks: …what? Must've been autocorrect or something, because your review made zero sense, to me at least. But yes, it is pretty off canon. But I don't really care either. Not for that one. **

**Jg13145: Because their fourth year would've been a leap year—if my calculations are correct. And the point of that chapter is Lily asking out James, and for once not sticking to canon. **

**Pelahnar: Yeah, it would suck. Those pirates lead a rowdy life, and it ain't exactly for the senior citizens, now, is it? I was pretty confused until you said it was a play xD **

**Anie1129: Weird indeed ;) **

**MissGleekKoleTigerBabe: Why thank you :3 **

**Blue Luver5000: And this chapter is your dare :) **


	81. The Moonlit Strode

At around nine, I prepared for my nighttime patrols—alone. Remus has fallen ill again with his furry little problem, and I wasn't exactly thrilled to be wandering the dark halls of Hogwarts, at night, alone. Things were getting unquiet around here, and while I can handle myself fine, thank you very much, there were some things I'd rather not get in the middle of.

Sighing, I headed out the portrait hole, book in hand. As usual, there were straggles of drunk seventh years, snogging couples, and various other people out of bed, breaking curfew. Not that it's uncommon or anything, just a trifle annoying to be telling the same people every time to get their behinds back in their dormitories or else. One of those people, regrettably, was a...ah, _acquaintance_ of mine.

"Hello, Potter," I leaned against a wall, crossing my arms. "D'you know what time it is?"

As I expected, there were faint waves of the sickening smell of alcohol rolling off his person, proved by the empty firewhiskey bottle in his left hand. I wrinkled my nose and started breathing through my mouth.

"No," he slurred. "Come sit down, Lils."

"Three liters, James? New record, is it?"

"I didn't drink all of it," he protested weakly. "That'd be suicide, it would…even I know that."

"You know," I said, "drinking while sitting by an open window isn't the best of choices. What if you fell off and bashed your head open on those rocks down there?"

"Not that you'd care."

"Well, the paperwork _would_ be a bit of a pain in my bum…"

"Nice bum, too," he commented. I gave him a light slap around the head.

"Get back to the common room, James. Or come with me to Slughorn's for something to get you out of that stupor."

He looked up at me, blinking. "I'm not drunk."

"Say that again, clearly."

"Fine, I'm drunk. Take me back to the common room, Lily. Or, better yet, my dorm…"

I slapped him again, harder this time. "Shut up and hurry up."

"I'm coming, I'm coming…" he clambered up, Vanishing the bottle. I waited until I was sure he wouldn't fall backwards out the window—because, you know, I'm sure Professor Dumbledore's got enough on his plate already; he didn't need an idiotic student falling to his death as well—and set off at a brisk pace, wanting to get this over as soon as possible.

"Wait," he said. I huffed impatiently and waited for him to catch up.

"Let's go, James, we haven't got all night," I called. "And I need to send Amos Diggory back to the Hufflepuff common room again, if he's doing what he's been doing for the past week—"

"What's he been doing?" asked a voice from behind me. I jumped up, a small screamed choked in my throat. James' smirking face peeked out of the shadows at me.

"Don't do that!" I said furiously. He blew me a cheeky kiss. I gnashed my teeth and repressed one of my frequent urges to punch him; it's been two weeks since I last did punch him, I didn't want to start fresh again, not when I'm on the verge of breaking a previous record of mine. Instead, I took it out on Mrs. Norris, who happened to be skulking around a corner. She hissed at me and disappeared around the base of a tall brass urn.

"Off to Filch, no doubt," James observed, watching her tail whip out of sight. "That was smart, Lily."

"I'm a prefect," I said. "Besides, I've wanted to kick that miserable thing since forever. Oh, that felt good."

"Good?" he snorted. "You're the first person I know to kick her! It's brilliant!"

"How you flatter me," I said dryly. "We're here. Off with you, now."

"And here I was, enjoying our moonlit strode together—"

"Just go. Waddiwassi," I said to a grumpy Fat Lady.

"So, until next time then?" he drawled, pulling me closer.

I rolled my eyes. "Go to bed, Potter."

"Only if you come with me," he whispered. I jerked away, slamming the portrait hole closed behind him. I heard a satisfactory crunch, then several angry curse words. The Fat Lady jolted awake from her renewed snooze, glaring at me.

"Sorry," I apologized. Turning around, I resumed my night patrol, while trying—unsuccessfully—to wipe the idiotic grin off my face.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy birthday, Dr. Seuss! Your poems have inspired me countless times, and they still do. This is a patrol chapter, of Jaisler's dare, and as always, it turned out to be not quite what I wanted it to be…<strong>

**~Gella**

**PS: I find it funny that spellcheck wanted to change Jaisler to jailer :P**


	82. The Moonlit Strode, Again

At around nine, I prepared for my nighttime patrols—alone. Remus was recovering from his furry little problem, and I wasn't exactly thrilled to be wandering the dark halls of Hogwarts, at night, alone. Things were getting unquiet around here, and while I can handle myself fine, thank you very much, there were some things I'd rather not get in the middle of.

Sighing, I headed out the portrait hole, pinning on my prefect badge. As usual, there were straggles of drunk seventh years, snogging couples, and various other people out of bed, breaking curfew. Not that it's uncommon or anything, just a trifle annoying to be telling the same people every time to get their behinds back in their dormitories or else. One of those people, regrettably, was a...ah, _acquaintance_ of mine.

"Hello, Potter," I leaned against a wall, crossing my arms. "D'you know what time it is?"

Remarkably, he was not drunk, like I thought he'd be. Instead, he was partly faced away from me, gazing into space, with an expression that I never would've thought would grace the arrogant features of James Potter. It was surprisingly tender, and sensitive.

"Hi, Lily. Come sit down, won't you?" his voice wasn't his voice either. For once, it wasn't haughty, or brimming with snarky confidence. It was softer than I had ever heard it.

"You…you all right, James?" I asked hesitantly, sitting next to him and dangling my legs over the ledge.

"Yeah. The moon is beautiful tonight, isn't it?" he said, smiling.

"Erm, yeah, it is. Are you sure you're fine?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure."

An arm wrapped around me. I stiffened, and then relaxed again. The night was chilly, and there was a cool breeze issuing from the open window, blowing my hair back. It felt good, to be there, with him.

"You know," he started, "this war that's going on right now—do you think it'll ever end?"

"I don't know. Depends on whether if someone would have the nerve to stand up to You-Know-Who, I suppose."

"Do you think…that we'll be together before it ends, or before it ends for us?" he asked, not looking away from the starry sky.

"Don't say that," I said, more sharply than I'd intended. "Don't say that. We're not going to die. And even if we do, I'm not going down without a fight."

He chuckled quietly, resting his chin on my head. I allowed him to, responding with what felt natural—leaning deeper into his arms. "And you would say that."

"I would," I confirmed. "And not until I bring part of him with me."

"And the first question?"

I considered it. "I don't know," I answered with complete honesty.

"So there's a chance for it to be a yes?" he whispered.

"I don't know," I said again.

"At least it isn't a total no," he mused to himself. I rolled my eyes, drawing my legs up, pressing closer.

"You should get back to the common room," I said finally. "I've got to finish my rounds too."

"All right." He helped me up, draping his jacket over my shoulders. It smelled nice. It smelled like him. "And keep thinking about that first question, eh?"

With that, he stepped forward and kissed me. Then he was gone around the corner, leaving me standing there, wearing his jacket, and too big a smile on my face.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is a variation of the previous chapter, if you couldn't tell. Drunk James is funnier, but my mood called for a more sirius chapter, so I wrote this one first, then the other one, and posted that one, then this. Confused yet? I think yes ;) <strong>

**~Gella**


	83. The Power of a Lily

It was dinnertime in Godric's Hollow. Lily, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were sitting around the table. No one had food on their plates. No one moved a muscle, not with Lily sitting there, practically hissing with anger. In the other room, various beeps and bleeps and delighted exclaims told them that the last of their number was still obsessing over the Muggle telephone. Or, 'fellytone', as James Potter so stubbornly calls it.

"Padfoot," Lily seethed, "get your mate in here. Now."

Sirius lounged back, grinning. "Sure thing, Lils. Oi, Pete! Get Prongsie here, won't you?"

With a sigh, Peter hopped off his chair and stuck his head through the bedroom door.

"James?" he began timidly. "Lily wants you in the dining room…"

"Just a moment now, Wormy," James said distractedly, pressing another button. A corresponding 'boop' made him jump up in happiness. "Marvelous!"

Peter sighed again and returned to his seat. No one spoke. Remus started edging away from Lily, as if the waves of fury rolling off of her could somehow affect him. Even Sirius looked a bit uncomfortable. Finally, Lily reached the limit of her thin-stretched patience.

"That's it," se snarled, shoving back her chair. "I have _had_ it."

"POTTER!" She screamed. "GET YOUR SORRY ARSE HERE NOW!"

The joyous yells and machine beeps stopped abruptly. A few moments later, a meek James slipped into his seat between Sirius and Lily, not daring to look at the latter.

"Thank you," she said lightly. "Let's eat."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: We women can be very scary when we choose to be. Beware. <strong>

**~Gella**


	84. To Woo a Blonde

"Oh, my gosh! This blouse this is, like, the cutest ever!" Marlene gushed. "Should I get this one or that other one, Sirius? Or does this one go better with these jeans? Sirius?"

She glanced around. Her boyfriend was nowhere to be seen. Growling, she dug in her bag for the Muggle cellular phone that Lily gave her for Christmas. Punching the numbers in with a little more force than needed, she waited impatiently. If he doesn't pick up, I will murder him, she vowed. As if the he somehow received his girlfriend's mental threat, Sirius answered on the fifth ring—a record for him.

"Where are you?" Marlene hissed. An ostentatious yawn was her immediate response. Then,

"Well, you know that Muggle jewelery shop a couple of doors down from the one we were in?"

"Yes…"

"The one that had that huge diamond ring in the display window?"

"Yes!"

"Which you said that you really, really wanted?"

She was squealing with excitement, jumping up and down. "Yes!"

"Well, I'm in the motorcycle place next to that store."

"You're the best, Siri—wait. _What_?" her eyes narrowed, hand clenching into a fist.

"I'm, erm, at the motorbike store," he said nervously into the dead phone. Marlene had disconnected. He cursed, knowing what's coming next. He was not wrong.

"SIRIUS!"

"Crap."


	85. The Quidditch Game That Started It All

The general hubbub and excitement of a Quidditch match was in the air, along with the crisp autumn wind. Such events like these are perfect opportunities to set certain things in motion, or to ruin them completely. It all depends on how you go about it.

Two best friends made their way through the crowd, chatting as best friends ought to chat. One had long, blonde hair and dark blue eyes, the image of elegant beauty. But even she dimmed compared to the other. Fiery yet cool, quiet yet energetic, many boys admired her from a distance, and some select others dared to step up and look her in the face. Just one, actually.

A tall figure shouldering a broom was also struggling against the tide of people and trying not to get recognized as the star of the Gryffindor team. He was hoping to catch a glance of a certain redhead, and perhaps something more. He was in luck.

"Oi!" he called, abandoning his pursuit of anonymity. "Oi, Evans!"

She stopped, glancing over her shoulder. Her friend elbowed her playfully and vanished into the throng. Lily made a mental note to kill her later. James Potter reached her.

"Wish me luck?" he asked, smiling.

"…Good luck," she said, smiling back. He started to turn away, but she grabbed his arm. "Hey! Not so fast."

Those green eyes were closing on him. "Um…"

"I _said_, good luck," she whispered, kissing him hard.


	86. The Marauder Birthday Tradition

Remus woke to the three faces above his own. For a moment he just lay there, staring up uncomprehendingly at them. Then he felt the slightest of breezes in a region of his person that should not feel such breezes. His eyes widened. He had forgotten what day it was, and what always happened on that day. With a yelp, he somersaulted out of bed, sending the rest of the Marauders flying in every direction. He looked around hastily for his clothes and found none.

"YOU GITS!" he yelled, grabbing the heaviest thing closest to him. That happened to be a water pitcher. A few moments later, his best friends were soaked and another pitcher had left this world.

"Happy birthday, Remmy," James choked out.

"Blimey, that birthday suit's lookin' good," Sirius winked at him. Peter said nothing, too busy dying on the carpet.

"Damn you all," the birthday boy growled.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy late birthday to our favorite werewolf I present this to you with the tiniest of tiny Wolfstar implications! So minute that you'll swear it's not even there! Okay fine, a blind man can spot it from a mile away. <strong>

**~Gella**


	87. Lilykins

"Lilykins."

The musing tone jolted me out of my short nap. Looking up irately, I found James Potter in an armchair next to me, repeating the word to himself. Well. This was rather suspicious.

"What did you just call me?" I asked, cursing the yawn that burst from my jaws. It did ruin the seriousness that I had intended a bit. And he knew it.

"Lilykins," he said again, grinning. "Can I call you Lilykins?"

"What?"

"Can I call you that?"

"No," I snapped. "No one calls me Lilykins."

He smiled wider. "All right. Lilykins it is, then."

Then he ran away before he lost the ability to have kids forever. But it was true. No one did call me that. Not unless they harbored a secret yearning for their arse to be hexed far and wide.

But…it sounded right, in a weird way. It sounded right the way he said it, almost with care…almost with love.

I'm joking myself. James Potter wouldn't do that. James Potter wouldn't _dare_ do that.

Anyway, he does have an outlandish middle name. I'm sure I can make something from that.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy Pi Day, and happy birthday, Einstein! There'll be a follow-up for this in the next chapter, so I need a name that Lily can taunt James with. His middle name is Charlus, by the way.<strong>

**~Gella**


	88. Jamie

"Jamie."

I looked up from the heavy Potions textbook, hastily dashing at the corner of my mouth. My sleeve came away wet, and I flushed. Drooling in front of Lily Evans! The horror!

"Jamie," she repeated, a smirk tugging at the corner of her lips. A smirk that was usually worn by me. It looked out of place on her angelic face. Still beautiful as always, but just…odd.

"Jamie?" I asked, running a hand through my sleep-flattened hair.

"Yeah. I'm going to call you that," she decided.

The way she said it…it wasn't her usual cold tone reserved for me. It was almost warm, almost friendly. And she was calling me something other than 'bullying, bigheaded toerag Potter'. But still. 'Jamie'? No. Only Mum called me that, and I'd prefer if it stayed that way.

My face must have said it all. She skipped away, still wearing her new devious smile.

"Hey! Come back!"

She gave a backwards wave. Her long hair fluttered behind her.

"_Lilykins_!"

The red mane stopped bouncing abruptly. Narrowed green eyes glowered at me.

"What was that, Jamie?"

The ferocity of her glare just about liquefied me right there and then. Thankfully, I had something to hold on to. "Lilykins," I said again, reclaiming my cocky grin. "Lilykins, Lilykins, Lilykins."

"Jamie, Jamie, Jamie," she chanted back.

"Lilykins!"

"Jamie!"

The portrait whole chose that moment to open. In arrived the person with the worst timing in the universe.

"Aw, look at this, Alice, they've got pet names for each other!" Sirius cried. Poor Alice cringed away from him. "Oh, you two are just so _cute_!"

"Shut up, Sirius-wubsy," we both said at the same time, then turned to face the other in surprise.

Sirius scowled. "Let it go, won't you? That was back in first year!"

"Which was only a year ago," Lily countered. "So, Sirius-wubsy it is!"

"Hey, look here now, Evans—"

"Sirius—"

"No, you are _not_ going to—"

"—wubsy!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: They are rather adorable, aren't they? <strong>

**~Gella**


	89. Green Eyes

James ran along the Gryffindor table, poking and prodding and pinching people.

"You're not wearing green!" he cried, gleefully punching his best mate. "And neither are you, Frank!"

"Green doesn't go well with my hair nor my eyes," Sirius said moodily. "And it's _their_ color."

James ignored his brooding, searching for his next victims. Remus had already fallen prey to him several minutes ago, as had Alice and Marlene. Peter and Dorcas each supported a mint-green badge with the swirly writing 'Tutshill Tornadoes' across the front. James suspected that the latter had taken pity of the former and duplicated her token for him.

"Evans isn't wearing green either, mate," Sirius told him. "Go punch her."

James looked over. She wore jeans and a jacket. No green.

"I can't punch a girl," he mumbled distractedly. Alice looked outraged and went to sit next to Frank, turning her back on him. Sirius snorted.

"You're just saying that because you're scared that she'll hex your—"

James turned to face him defiantly. "She has green."

"Unless it's on her knickers, I don't see any green."

"Her eyes are green," James murmured, smiling.

Sirius plunked his head down on the table.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy St. Patty's Day ;3 Seamus must be getting a lot of smooches today, eh?<strong>

**~Gella**


	90. The Come and Go Room

The portrait hole blasted open. Two pairs of feet came pounding in. Peter didn't have to look up to know who it was. James stretched and flopped onto the carpet next to him.

"I wanna do something."

"Do your homework." Remus said.

"Ew, Moony. What are you, my grandma? Let's play hide-and-seek!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, blimey, that sounds fun," Sirius said brightly. "It brings back wonderful memories of a five-year-old me, you know."

James ignored him. "Let's get some girls to play too."

"What he means by that is that he and Evans can snog where none of us can find them," Sirius told Peter.

"I heard that!" James snapped. "Oh, hello, Lily. Care to join us in a lighthearted game?"

"Don't be so formal, James," she laughed. "Really, I think I prefer 'Oi, Evans!' compared to this."

He shrugged. "Okay then. Oi, Evans! Wanna play?"

"And this is when it starts," Sirius groaned.

* * *

><p>"Ready or not, here I come," Remus called unenthusiastically. Peter looked around frantically; he hasn't yet found a place to hide. Tired footsteps echoed nearer and nearer. He sighed and resigned himself to be 'It' for the next round.<p>

_I really need to find a better spot next time_, he thought.

Just as Remus was about to come upon his pathetic little cranny— wedged between two tall brass urns—he tumbled down, onto something soft. He looked around. He was in a rather deep hole, and Peter thought that something resembling a tunnel led out of there.

"Peter?" Remus asked. He almost called out, but clapped his hand over his mouth just in time. After a few moments, Remus shrugged and went on to find the others.

Time passed. He heard the others looking for him, calling his name. Peter remained silent, reveling in the fact that they couldn't find him. Besides, the fluffy thing under him was quite nice. He'd give them a few more minutes…

Another ten minutes dragged by. His friends' voices had ceased. Peter was growing anxious.

"James?" he called out hesitantly. "Sirius? Remus? Lily?"

No one answered.

"James!" he wailed. "James, where are you all?"

A desolate echo of his cries mocked him mercilessly. Peter sighed and got to his feet. It wouldn't do to simply sit there and despair. He needed to find a way out of here.

Remembering how the sudden fall had concealed him from Remus, he tried to recall his words. He was pretty sure he hadn't said anything out loud…

_I need a way out of here_, he tried.

No doorway sprang up before his eyes, no trapdoor materialized on the ground. He did not give up. After scouting around, he discovered a door—a door that lead to a broom closet.

"Well, wonderful," he snapped, kicking a bucket. "What am I supposed to do now?"

The bucket tipped over and rolled a few meters away, then promptly disappeared. His interest piqued, Peter followed where it had gone. One second the ground was nice and solid, and the next an abrupt drop dumped him on his bum…in front of those urns he was hiding between! The bucket lay a few meters next to him.

_I need that place where I was_, he thought. _I need that place where I was, I need that—_

_Now_, a door formed on the wall, brass knob and intricate patterns melting into shape. He turned the handle. It was a blank room, but most definitely where he was. He stepped out again.

_I need a place where…where Remus can study in peace. _

The door didn't change shape. A bit hesitantly, he opened again and beheld a heavy mahogany desk, tall bookshelves, and several large bins of chocolate.

Grinning, he raced back to the Gryffindor Tower.

"James! Sirius! There's something I need to show you…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: 700, eh? Excuse me while I scream. Lady Elizabeth, thank you for being my lucky hundred-interval reviewer. You guys all get a big hug for being amazing like that! <strong>

**~Gella**


	91. The Present

James woke to the very pleasant sight of a pair of green eyes smiling down at him.

"Hey," Lily murmured, kissing him. "You're a man now."

"Mmmmf?" James mumbled against her lips. "Oh yeah. My birthday. I'm seventeen!"

"Took you a while," she laughed. "Happy birthday, James."

"I'm seventeen. And you're seventeen. That means I can marry you now!" he said happily. "We can have a brilliant wedding with color-coordinated flowers and invitations and Sirius can be best man and Marlene can be maid of honor and I'll actually have to flatten my hair for once—"

"Whoa, whoa, slow down," she interrupted his fantasies with a finger against his mouth. He shut up immediately. "Let's just focus on the present for now, shall we? It'll be as good as any dream wedding of yours we'll have."

The present, James had to agree, as Lily leaned down to kiss him once again, _was_ looking good.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: EXCUSE ME WHILE I FANGIRL SCREAM! HAPPY FREAKIN BIRTHDAY JAMES CHARLUS POTTER! I DON'T CARE IF OTHER GIRLS WANT A SNAPE TO THEIR LILY, I'D TAKE A JAMES ANY DAY! Oh, don't mind me, I'm high on sugar ._O I'm sorry for writing such a short chapter after leaving this story for a week straight, but my life is hectic right now. Hopefully it'll settle down soon.<strong>

**~Gella**


	92. Young Love

"Do any of you have plans for Easter Break?" Sirius asked one day at breakfast.

"No, why?" Lily replied, spooning some eggs onto her plate. "You have anything in mind?"

"Well, my cousin Andromeda—she's the nice one!" he added hastily at the looks of fear and shock from his friends at the mention of 'cousin'. "She owled me yesterday, asking if we wanted to visit."

"You're sure she's the nice one?" James asked. "I still remember the first time I met your _other_ cousin…"

Sirius scowled. "Let's see. She was blasted off the tree for marrying a Muggleborn, dear old Auntie Druella raged for about a week after. So, yes, I'm sure she's the nice one."

"Just checking. I swear my left buttock has never been the same since that day six years ago."

"So, d'you wanna go or no?"

"Sure," Lily shrugged. "I want to meet this nice cousin of yours."

"Don't say that to her face," Sirius warned.

Lily smacked him. "Who'd you think I am? You?"

"Stop flirting with my girlfriend, you," James growled.

Sirius and Lily both sighed.

-x-

Lily looked around the bustling Hogsmeade station. "Where's Wormy?"

"He said he had something at home," Remus replied. "Can we get on already? My feet are freezing."

"I'll warm your feet for you, Grammie dearie," Sirius squeaked, bumping the slight boy's shoulders. As a result, Remus was knocked into a group of tittering witches. He glared at Sirius, cracking his knuckles.

"I hope you're thinking about killing Sirius," James said, laughing. "Not so soon, anyway."

Lily rolled her eyes. "You hooligans."

"I know," Sirius agreed.

"_Stop_ flirting with my girlfriend!"

-x-

"We're here!" Sirius announced happily, spotting the 9 3/4 sign. "Everyone off—got your crochet needles, Grams? And your fake teeth? Don't forget those dentures, now."

"I want to hit you," Remus muttered.

"But you won't because you love me, right?"

James pushed his best friend. "Just go."

"Is that them?" Lily asked, peering over her boyfriend's shoulder. "Bloody—what's Bellatrix doing here?"

"That's Andromeda!" Sirius shouted indignantly. "Don't go around comparing her to that mad bi—"

"Oh, your nice cousin?"

"Yeah."

"Who's that with her?" James asked. "Blimey—pink hair!"

"Oh yeah," Sirius said breezily. "That's their daughter, Dora. She's a cute little thing. Metamorphagus, you know."

"Siwius!" the small girl squealed. "Hi, Siwius!"

"Dora!" he cried, dropping his suitcase on James' toes and wrapping her in a big hug. "Hi, Andi."

"Hello, Sirius," she hugged him as well, smiling.

Sirius put Dora down, patting her head. "This is James, my best friend," he introduced.

"How do you do?" James gasped through watering eyes. Out of the corner of his mouth, he muttered to Sirius, "What's in your trunk? Your Beater bats?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," Sirius whispered back. "Oh, and this is Lily, Prongsie's girlfriend and my sister."

"Hello," Lily smiled, shaking Andromeda's hand. "Sirius's told me a lot about you. You're the n—" she stopped midsentence and shot a sheepish glance at Sirius. "—er, the normal one."

"I see," the witch said, a bit perplexed. "And who's this?" she gestured to Remus, who was hanging back.

"This? This is Remus, my darling old grandmum," Sirius crooned, wrapping an arm around Remus' shoulders. "He's a bit hard of hearing, you see, so speak up!"

Remus shoved him away, giving Andromeda a strained smile. "Your cousin is a git," he told her. "But nice to meet you."

"I know he is," she said sympathetically. "Good thing is, our parents didn't believe in family bonding time, so I didn't have to see much of him when we were little."

"You're mean," Sirius whined.

Andromeda laughed. "Let's go now. Ted's home," she added. "Not too safe for him to be out these days.

"Where's Dora?" Lily said suddenly.

"Here," someone grunted. The others glanced around. Remus was wrestling with a rather overexcited child, whose hair was now the same shade of brown as his.

"Wemus! Wemus!" she laughed, tugging on strands of hair like reins. "Go, Wemmy, go!"

"Dora!" her mother scolded. "Get off poor Remus this instant!"

"It's—all right—" Remus groaned as several hairs were tugged out by their roots.

"Someone's got a crush," Sirius whispered loudly.

Remus handed Dora to her mother, advancing towards Sirius. "Say that one more time, Black—"

Sirius turned and pranced away. "Let's go! Lily, I can carry that for you—

James spun around. "Stop—"

"—it looks—"

"—flirting with—"

"—rather—"

"my—"

"—heavy." Sirius finished at last, bowing to James. "Just trying to be a gentleman, mate. You should try that some time. It works wonders with the ladies. Ow!"

James chucked a rock at the back of his head. The rock broke in half.

-x-

By the time they arrived at the Tonkses, Dora was throwing a full-out fit.

"Hungwy," she complained loudly. "Mummy, I hungwy."

"Mummy will make you something when we get there," Andromeda sighed, glancing in the backseat of her husband's Muggle car. "Stop squishing Remus, dear."

"Sowwy," the toddler grinned toothily. A harassed Remus backed out of the small corner he was cramped in. "Play wif me, Wemmy?"

"We'll all play with you, Dora," Lily said kindly, trying to save Remus. It didn't work.

"No," Dora said stubbornly, her hair turning scarlet to reflect her mood. "I play wif Wemmy."

James laughed and prodded Sirius. He whispered a few words to his best friend.

"You're on!" Sirius crowed. "How much?"

Remus gave them a nervous glance, then at the girl tugging on the hem of his shirt insistently. He settled on the view, pointedly ignoring the other two sights.

"We're here!" Andromeda announced. "Ted'll bring your trunks up," she told them. "And in the meanwhile, will you watch Dora while I make something for supper?"

"Sure!" James said enthusiastically, smirking at Sirius. They both turned to look at Remus, who ignored them and pretended to be rummaging in his trunk for something.

"I hope you two aren't betting again," Lily hissed.

"We're not," Sirius whispered back. "Honestly!"

James clocked him around the head. "Just because we're in this together right now doesn't mean I won't strangle you if you flirt with my girlfriend one more time, you know."

"Boys," Lily muttered, stomping away.

-x-

Dora was doing good on her promise earlier about playing with no one but Remus.

"NO!" she shrieked for the fourth time when Lily tried coaxing her to play with the stuffed bear she held. "WEMMY! I WANT WEMMY!"

"She sure got attached to you," Lily remarked to a disheveled Remus who'd only just escaped Dora's clutches a second ago. A fruitless attempt, because it was evident that she would not rest until her Wemmy came.

"I guess me and James and Lily would just have to go outside, then," Sirius told him. "Have fun with Dora, Grandma!"

"Damn—you—" Remus choked out while his new charge swung back and forth while dangling from his neck. A moment later, a heavy pan connected with the back of his skull with a resounding _thunk_.

"Guest or not, I won't have you saying those words in front of my daughter!" Andromeda admonished him sternly. "Go play hide-or-seek with her. She loves it."

"Er…okay," he whispered faintly.

"I go hide and you count to two-ten, Wemmy!" she scrambled away, eyes sparkling. Remus resigned himself to fate and started counting in a monotone.

"….nineteen, twenty. Ready or not, here I come," he said the familiar words, then set out to find Dora.

First he checked every one of the cabinets in the kitchen and in the bathroom. Then, he lumbered upstairs, peeking into the largest bedroom. Tentatively, he opened a closet that must've been Andromeda's, and withdrew his head sharply, furiously blushing. Next, he embarked a self-guided tour of the whole place, basement included—Mr. Tonks was down there and gave him some pieces of advice of where his daughter was likely to hide. Heeding his words, Remus checked behind all the doors and the small nooks and crannies and still hadn't found her.

"Curtains," he said to himself. "Look around those."

A painstaking few minutes later, he finally came upon her small form concealed in the folds of the heavy drapes in one of the guest rooms. Her back was turned. He walked as quietly as possible and squatted down in front of her; she hasn't noticed him yet. Gently, Remus tapped her on the shoulder and she whipped around, colliding facefirst with him.

"Wemmy!" she exclaimed, pushing the curtains aside and jumping into his arms. "You found me!"

"Yeah, I did. You're good at this," he told her. "It took me pretty long."

"You found me," she repeated and planted a small kiss on his cheek. Ignoring his flaming face, she whispered, "I like you, Wemus."

"Oh, er, I like you too, Dora…"

"AWWWWWW!" Sirius shouted, jumping up from behind the bed. "WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT!"

"Young love," Lily sighed dreamily. "Sorry, Remus, but that was _adorable_."

"Cough up, mate," Sirius said to James. James tipped grudgingly five Galleons into his palm.

"So you two _were_ betting!" Lily gasped. "How could you lie to me, James?"

"It was all Sirius' idea!" James yelped, backing up from his girlfriend. "I had nothing to do with it!"

"Yeah right, as in you said, and I quote, 'Let's set Remus up with Dora!'" Sirius retorted.

James whimpered as Lily stalked towards him. "Don't hurt me, Lily. I swear I won't do it again!"

Lily hugged him. "That was great of you two," she said, hugging Sirius as well. "Thanks to you, a beautiful relationship has blossomed!"

"Yeah!" Sirius agreed. "But, call me old-fashioned, but isn't there a bit of an age difference…?"

"Shut it, Sirius. It's wonderful and you know it."

"You're right, Lils. When's the wedding, Remus? Can I be best man? It's an honor for me, you know, my dearest granny getting married and all."

"Stop flirting with my girlfriend!" James yelled, red in the face.

"It ain't all about you and your girlfriend anymore, Prongs," Sirius sang. "There's a new couple in town, and it's none other than our favorite bookworm and Metamorphagus!"

"So splendid and magnificent is their love!" James added, dancing the waltz with Lily. "Come on, Remus, sing along. It _is_ your love life, you know."

"Show a bit of cheer now, Grandma!"

"_Gits_," Remus seethed.

**AN: '"And who's this?" she gestured to Remus, who was hanging back.**

"**Your future son-in-law," he told her smoothly.'**

**Imagine Andromeda's face if he'd said that x')**

**~Gella**


	93. The Come and Go Room, Again

**Skaterofthebooks, you gave me this idea without meaning to. Or maybe you did mean it. Hope you like :3**

* * *

><p>James was in trouble. There was a dead end in front of him, Mrs. Norris on his right, and a group of snogging couples on his left. And behind him was more worrying than all those other directions combined. Behind him was Lily.<p>

"Run all you like, Potter," she screamed, hair flying and wand at the ready. "I thought maybe you'd finally gotten it in your head. But no. You dare ask me out again. I WILL _END_ YOU."

"Damn," he muttered, looking frantically for an escape route. There were none. He drew his own wand as well, for safety reasons, and backed up against the wall, preparing to be publically humiliated by the angry redhead. It wouldn't be the first time that it's happened, anyway. But still, that didn't stop him from praying for some miraculous thing to save him from the rampaging Lily.

Her footsteps were drawing nearer. James closed his eyes, swallowing and waiting. _She must be taking pleasure in slow torture_, he thought. _Just leaving me here, hanging, wondering whether she'd kill me with my eyes closed or open. Girls like that…are…impressive._

_ Slow torture or not, surely she would've done something by now…_

_ Now, James, don't be too impulsive…she might be right there, ready to strike the moment you open your eyes._

_ ...she's sure taking her time, huh…_

"All right," James said out loud, opening his eyes. "Lily, if you're going to—Lily?"

Lily was nowhere in sight. He blinked, then blinked again. He was facing a stretch of blank wall. He shifted slightly and an old bucket fell on his head. His elbow connected painfully with something. James stood up; several dozen items showered down on his head in the cluttered old broom closet. There was a doorknob, thank Merlin. He turned it and opened the door, and saw Lily gawking at him, green eyes as round as saucers.

"Nice, eh?" he grinned, offering her a hand. "Care to explore?"

She eagerly took it, wanting to find out what sort of enchantment had done this. However, something was off as he pulled her into a cramped, dark space—a broom closet.

"But before we explore _that_," he whispered, taking her face in his hands, "there's something else I'd rather explore first."

"Potter—" she started. He cut her off, and she stopped struggling abruptly. They stayed in that closet for a long time, and to this day, the students of Hogwarts still haven't quite figured out why there were sounds coming from a solid, brick wall next to a tapestry of trolls trying to do the ballet. After many outrageous testimonies from self-claimed witnesses, such as that there was a pair of snogging lovers, they finally concluded that it was just another odd piece of mysterious magic that no one will ever encounter again.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, we're nearing 100 chapters. In case you were wondering, I'm not going to end it at 99, or 100, or 101. I'm not going to end it, period. I'll be writing most Next Gen next, but Marauder Era will <strong>_[always]_** be my favorite. So, I'm not ending this, just updating less frequently :P **

**PS: I updated earlier today, Young Love. If you didn't get the email, go read it. For me. Nah just kidding. Read it because it contains Remus/Tonks and Wolfstar xD**


	94. Pranks Don't Always Go As Planned

"Evans!" Sirius gestured urgently to a certain passing fourth year witch. "C'mere."

She peered around the statue of Uric the Ugly, an annoyed expression on her face. "What, Black?"

"I need you," he told her. "Get over here."

"I'm going to be late!"

"It's dinner next," he told her. "Oh just listen to me. Right. I'm pranking James."

She stood up abruptly. "That's it. I am _so_ not getting involved."

"Come on! Please?" he begged.

"No, no, no, and NO," she said firmly. "I'll be going now."

"I'll—I'll be nice to Snape!" he said, desperation finally leaking through. Lily slowly turned around.

"Are you serious?" she asked incredulously.

"I'm always Sirius, but yeah, I won't hex him or call him Snivellus anymore. For as long as me and James can endure it. All right, fine, as long as he doesn't do something nasty to us."

Lily sighed. "Bloody blackmailing me, aren't you, Black?"

"Yes," he grinned. "But you know you'll agree."

"I hate you," she muttered. "What do you want me to do?"

Sirius outlined his plan for her rapidly.

"But that'll break his heart!" Lily protested. "I can't—you know—toy with his feelings like that!"

"He'll understand. And why do you care?"

"I don't! It's just such a barbaric thing to do—!"

Sirius cut across her. "Think of the deal, Lily. Think of how happy that slimeball—I mean, that Slytherin will be without me dumping the last of my Itching Powder in his underpants. And tripping him in the corridors. And knocking his books out of his hands every chance I get."

"Will it be privately?" she asked. "Because if it's not, this deal is _off_."

"Yes," Sirius confirmed. "Now go do it!"

* * *

><p>Lily inhaled and closed her eyes. Time to put her Gryffindor courage to the test. It was now or never, she thought herself. She took another deep breath, summoned every ounce of nerve in her being, and walked into the empty common room. Well, empty save for one.<p>

"Hey James," she said playfully, trying to remember how Marlene walked when she wanted the attention of every boy within a five-mile radius. A toss of hair and a hand on hip, something like that…

It worked. James stared, not even bothering to hide the fact that he was full-out _gawping_ at her. Lily seated herself on the arm of his chair as if she did it every day. Lazily she laid a hand on his head, hiding a grimace through the sweetest smile she could pull on.

"I was wondering," she continued leisurely, "if you were free this weekend?"

James swallowed, not daring to believe that this was actually happening. "Erm, yeah—"

"Oh good. I need a tutor for that new theory McGonagall taught us today." She paused to bat her eyes, smiling winningly. "And there's no better person than you."

"This isn't a prank, is it?" James asked suspiciously. "I know what day it is."

Now it was Lily's turn to gulp. "Oh, um, no, not at all! I'm serious," she added. "Well, you know, not _Sirius_. I'd never want to be that git. But really, I do need help. Please, James," she took up the damsel-in-distress mode, while cursing Sirius to the deepest depth of hell in her mind.

"Okay," he agreed readily. "We can study all day if you want."

"That's settled then!" Lily chirped, hopping onto her feet. "Now, if you'd excuse me, I'm off to go beat your best mate into a bloody pulp. I mean—" she glanced furtively over her shoulder to see if he'd noticed the slip. Luckily, no, he did not. Unluckily, she had now landed herself the condemnation of an entire day in James Potter's company. She turned back to the task at hand.

"Sirius Black, you are _dead_."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Wow, I suck -_- I'm a day late for an occasion. Again. But just pretend today's still April 1<strong>**st****, yes? Soo…**

**HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRED AND FORGE WEASLEY! AND FRED, IT WAS SIMPLY A TYPO, WE ALL KNOW YOU'RE NOT DEAD! And Happy April Fools as well ;) Did anyone play a good prank or two?**

**~Gella**


	95. Friendly MindReading

Remus sat quietly by the window, tracing the outline an old photograph. He did it more from memory than sight; the moon had waned from its roundest to a tiny sliver in the sky. He knew that his mother was waving up at him cheerfully from the picture, and that his father's face was worry-free, less lined than it was now. Remus sighed, tucking the worn paper away. He was about to sneak back into the common room when he sensed someone standing behind him.

"Hi Remmy," Lily said softly, sitting down next to him. "Couldn't sleep either?"

"No," he replied. "What's keeping you up?"

There was a brief silence. Then, "James."

"James?"

"James," she nodded. "I'm confused about him."

Remus chuckled. "Is this what I think it is?"

Lily groaned. "Probably."

"He's a good bloke, Lily, no matter how much of a git he seems to be," he told her gently.

"Yeah, I know. But he's so…ugh!"

"I agree," Remus said dryly. "He really is 'ugh' sometimes. I'm guessing sharing a common room with him isn't really helping?"

"No," Lily said, surprising him. She surprised him even more when she rested her head on his shoulder. "Not really. We're getting along fine. It's just…I _wonder_ about him, you know? Like, what's under there, under the arrogance and git-ness and all that…"

"Under there," Remus said, "is a faithful heart."

She jerked up, the white gleam of her smile sharply visible. "He's not paying you to say all this, is he?" Lily asked playfully, prodding her friend. "What's the reward, a Honeydukes double chocolate bar?"

"And the promise to keep Sirius off my back too. I'm kidding!" he added hastily. "No, really, Lily. He's trustworthy. He won't…play your heart like you think he will."

"You read my bloody mind," she muttered. "How do you do that?"

"I've been told that I'm observant," he said.

"If only I could read James' mind."

Remus turned to grin at her. "To do that, you must get close to him first."

"That's it. I'm convinced you're getting chocolate tomorrow," she exclaimed, laughing.

"That wouldn't be half bad either."

"Thanks, Remus," Lily said and squeezed his hand. It was a friendly gesture, the very first of its kind. But then again, his life had been nearly devoid of girls anyway.

"You're welcome."

They sat there, two friends enjoying each other's company. They sat there, until the darkness swallowed them.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I figured Remus deserved a little love, so I gave him Lily. They're just best friends, you know? The kind that you can tell everything to without worrying. And the fact that he's friends with a possible love interest is an added bonus as well…<strong>

**~Gella**


	96. You Mad?

**AN: Okay, I haven't died, for anyone who cares, just extremely busy. Someone suggested that I do a few chapters based on well-known memes (if you don't know what that is, I don't know how to explain. Look it up or something xD) and I thought it was a great idea. So, I'll be writing a series of five memes-based chapters—or more, if they turn out well. Today's meme/rage face is a classic.**

* * *

><p>"We have to be very, very quiet, all right?" Sirius whispered loudly.<p>

"Okay," Peter nodded. "But just what exactly are we doing?"

"It's James and Lily's first anniversary, of course! And as his bestest of friends, I planned something!" Sirius beamed at him and Remus. Both looked back dubiously. He sighed. "So here's how it goes. Obviously Evans gave him a shag for the occasion, and if my sources are correct, they're still in there." He gestured to the door in front of them. "We break in, set off a few Dungbombs and all that, then watch his reaction as we catch him in the act. Sounds good, no?"

"How do you know she shagged him?" Remus asked. "Lily wouldn't do that, would she?"

"Oh, she would," the taller boy said dismissively.

"How do you know?"

Sirius waved a hand airily. "Trust me, Remmy boy, I've seen it all."

"Oh-kay…"

"Let's get on with it now! Very quiet, now," Sirius warned and pushed open the door. Immediately upon their entrance, a chorus of exploding Dungbombs congratulated Sirius on yet another well-rigged prank.

"Happy birthday!" the three yelled. James jerked up, eyes wide with panic.

"Bloody hell—what are you _doing_ here?" he shouted, pulling the sheets up to his neck. A dark red head popped up as well. Lily rubbed her eyes sleepily, looking blearily up at the Marauders.

"Lily?" Sirius exclaimed in mock surprise. "What are you doing…in James' bed?"

James made an odd movement, a cross between a tooth-gnash and a punch.

Sirius smirked at him. "You mad, bro?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Yes, I'm well aware that they don't say that in England in the 70's. It's all for humor's sake. If there are any particular ones you want me to write, leave a review and I'll try to do them :3<strong>

**~Gella**


	97. FUUUUUUUUUUUdge

James strode into the common room, trying out his new swaggering walk. It was actually sort of working, until he came upon an innocent-looking patch of carpet, slipped, and landed neatly on his arse. He glanced around, praying that no one was there to witness his humility, so of course Lily Evans was there, trying to keep a straight face while covering her laughter with a book.

"Who put that there?" he demanded, sitting next to her. "And what is it, anyway?"

"McLaggen, the idiot," she rolled her eyes. "I think it's just a charm, but I'm not sure."

James peered suspiciously at her. "Is it just me, or did you just say his name with affection?"

"It's just you," she told him, turning back to her book.

"So, you don't fancy him or anything?"

"Nope."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Positive?"

"Negative. Joking," she added hastily as James started to rise, a snarl on his face and his wand gripped in his hand. "Relax, James."

He did not relax, not in the least. "You two aren't going out or anything, right?"

"Of course not. I wouldn't ever date a bigheaded, arrogant, bullying toerag like _McLaggen_."

There was definitely no affection in her tone this time. James looked a little more at ease. "So, who _are_ you dating?" he asked, subtly trying to get her to finally go to Hogsmeade with him. She wasn't dating anyone, he was sure. She'd answer no, then he'd ask her—subtly, of course—and she'd then say yes, then they'd have the time of their lives—

Lily's answer tore him cruelly from his daydream and dumped him on his arse again. "Danny Corner. You know, that tall bloke? From Ravenclaw?"

James picked himself off the floor, eyes ablaze. "_WHAT_?"

"Danny Corner," she repeated slowly, watching him nervously.

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU—"

"Fudge!" she cried. "I love fudge! Especially those with hazelnuts in them."

"Well, excuse me while I go blow that Corner bloke to little bits and pieces—I mean, while I go, ah, finish my essay…" James left Lily to her fudge-dream and stomped away. "ACH!"

He'd slipped again.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: James is SO ADORABLE when he's jealous :'D Thank you, to all of your who congratulated me on 100. It felt really weird, typing a three-digit number into the doc manager ._. And this is exactly 394 words :D<strong>

**~Gella**


	98. Forever Peter

"'Couples day is today!'" Remus read off of the news bulletin board. "'Find a wizard or witch of your choice and come join the fun.'"

"It is just me," Sirius remarked, "or did 'come join the fun' sound really, really funny?"

"It's just you," James told him. "Who put this up?"

"McLaggen," Lily answered, rolling her eyes. "That idiot."

James peered suspiciously at her. "Is it just me, or did you just say his name with _affection_?"

"It's just you," she told him.

"So you don't fancy him or anything?"

Lily sighed. "No, James."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

James relaxed visibly. "Okay, good. Because he is a rather good Beater and I'd be sorry to see his arms and legs shrink to the size of a grape, what with the next match coming up and all." Lily glared at him, but said nothing more. Meanwhile, Sirius was scanning the crowd and soon found his target.

"Oi, McKinnon!" he bellowed. "Date with me?" The other two Marauders hit the ground and curled into a fetal position, clamping their palms over their ears.

"Okay," she yelled back. James and Remus got up from their trembling position on the floor.

"You two are meant for each other," James said. "Well, your lungs, at least."

"I've gotten used to it," Lily shrugged. "She's our alarm clock, you know. None of the girls in my dorm have ever been late before. We'd much rather get up than have her holler in our ears."

"So, couples day," Sirius steered them back onto topic. "Let's pick our other half right now. I'm good, so…"

"I'm going to study," Remus said quickly. Sirius grabbed his arm before he could hightail it out of there.

"Hey, it's couples day! You have to pick, Remus."

The thin boy looked pleadingly at Lily. In response, she dragged one of her friends over.

"Mary, meet Remus. He's going to be your boyfriend and you're going to be his girlfriend. Questions? Good! Off you go, now," she tapped their hands with her wand and shoved them away. In the distance, they could hear the new couple trying to figure out how to undo the charm and separate their fingers. Sirius turned to her with a big grin.

"Brilliant, Evans! Now let's find you someone…" he trailed off, looking at a group of girls, who have gathered in a circle around them. "Er, who are these?"

"They're my friends," she said happily. "Now then. Alice, who're you going with?"

"Frank," said a blushing, round-faced girl.

"Of course. And you, Dorc?"

"No one," the tomboy rolled her eyes. "And don't you dare try to find me someone either!"

"Too late. Davies!" Lily shouted to the passing Hufflepuff. "I know you fancy girls who know their Quidditch, so here you go, have a lovely time…" Dorcas was carted off as well, shooting killer looks at her friend, with her newly-found boyfriend yapping about tactics and broomsticks. Lily turned to the rest of her dormmates, who shrank away from her, having seen the fates of the two previous girls. Pretty soon, only James, Sirius, Marlene, and Lily remained.

"Okay, we're all ready for tomorrow," Lily concluded.

"Wait! What about you? Who're you going with?" Sirius asked, waggling his eyebrows. She frowned at him. "I say you and James go together. Those in favor of that, raise your hands please."

Four hands shot up, with James using both of his. Sirius smiled sweetly at Lily. "Looks like it's settled then."

"Fine," she grumbled, but hid a smile. "Let's go before I kill you all."

The four started towards the Great Hall, laughing and talking. No one noticed the lonesome figure gazing at their backs with a peculiar expression. No one saw Peter Pettigrew at that moment, except one. John Creevey, who always carried around a big black camera, snapped a picture of Peter's face from a distance and soon forgot about it. Decades later, however, the picture surfaced again, got dubbed the name 'meme' and rose to international fame. It was aptly named 'Forever Alone', and no one, particularly the unaware photographer himself, knew its origin.

Until now.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I hate you, Pettigrew. You deserve the hate I'm piling on you, every single ounce of it. Oh, by the way, the first few paragraphs is rather similar to chapter 101, as you might have noticed. I wrote this chapter first, didn't what to do with it, so wrote the FUUUU— chapter out of the beginning.<strong>

**~Gella**


	99. Sirius Guy

It was Let's Look At Old Pictures Day for the Marauders and Lily—a totally impromptu, totally embarrassing decision. Food was piled in tall heaps; thick black albums were strewn around the large room. They'd taped their currently likeness to the back of the older photos, so they would know who it was upon flipping. It was a tight fit as the five of them crowded around their first year pictures, made worse by the gigantic bowl of cereal in front of Sirius.

"He's never gonna get a girlfriend," Sirius remarked, pointing at a scruffy youth making rude gestures at the camera. "I mean, look at him!"

Lily raised an eyebrow at him and turned the page. Dark eyes, long shaggy hair, and a very familiar smirk greeted them. The rude gestures had progressed from Creative Firstie to Seventeen-Year-Old-Who's-Done-Some-Things-Children-His-Age-Shouldn't-Have.

Sirius spewed.

* * *

><p>"You're never gonna get a boyfriend," Sirius told picture-Remus.<p>

Lily turned the page. A very fetching sight of a very naked Sirius wrestling with a very pissed-off Remus was on the other side.

"I take that back," Sirius said weakly.

* * *

><p>"He's never gonna get a girlfriend," Sirius said, turning up his nose at a round, pudgy Gryffindor. Lily turned the page. Sirius looked guiltily at Peter.<p>

"Well this is awkward…"

* * *

><p>"She's never gonna get a boyfriend," Sirius sniffed, setting his bowl down on the face of a young witch with fiery hair. Lily turned the page; a picture of herself and James dancing waved up at her.<p>

"Told you!" Sirius cried triumphantly.

* * *

><p>Lily wrinkled her nose. "Who's this bloke? I've never seen him around before."<p>

"That's the one who got kicked out for being even too lame for Hufflepuff," James told her. "I think his name is Justina Beaver, something like that?"

"He's never gonna get a girlfriend," Sirius said, shoveling another spoonful into his mouth.

"Let's see," Lily replied and turned the page.

Sirius spewed. Grabbing the book from James's grip, he ran around the room like he was on helium, trying to lick the picture. "I LOVE YOU," he moaned.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I love Cereal Guy :'D <strong>

**Those of you who also read Marauder Turned Muggle, I've finally updated. Just thought you ought to know.**

**~Gella**


	100. He Knows

Lily was reading in the common room by the fire when James snuck up from behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Hi James," She said distractedly, focused on her book. He frowned at her.

"You're reading," He stated.

"No duh."

"I meant, _I'm_ here but you're still reading."

"And why should I stop reading just because _you're_ here?" She asked, raising one eyebrow, bemused. James gestured wildly at her book then himself, mouthing silently.

"What's this you're reading, anyway? It looks like a bunch of rubbish to me," He scowled at the book as though it had personally offended him. Lily sighed and read a bit aloud to James.

"A man, a plan, a cat, a ham, a yak, a yam, a hat, a canal-Panama,"

James looked bewildered. Lily continued.

"Borrow or rob?"

"What?" Peter has joined the pair too.

"Do geese see God?"

"Oh! I think I get it," Peter said, realization dawning on him.

"Dr. Awkward,"

"For the _love_ of Merlin, who's _that_?"

"Dog doo? Good God!"

James was cross-eyed and Peter was smiling. Sirius pranced over, throwing an arm around Lily's shoulders.

"What the bloody hell are these, Lils?"

Lily sighed again. "They're palindromes, Black."

He nodded seriously (no pun intended). "Seems legit."

Lily shot him a look. "You mean, 'that would appear to be legitimate', right?"

"No," Sirius said, confused, "I mean, 'seems legit'."

Lily shook her head. "That would appear to be legitimate."

"Seems legit!"

"That would appear to be legitimate!"

"Watch out," James remarked with a smirk, "we've got a badass over here."

Lily spun around. "And _you_ mean, 'beware! There is a scoundrel present.'"

James snorted. "Badass you are, Lils."

"Cool story, James," Peter nodded. Lily rounded on him angrily.

"'Interesting tale, old chap'," she spat, daring him to contradict her. Peter shrank back with a whimper. Sirius patted him on the back and turned confidently to Lily.

"Asdfghjkl," he told her. Lily stared back.

"What?"

"Asdfghjkl," Sirius repeated.

"Sounds like a bunch of rubbish to me," she said.

Sirius nodded again. "I know."

"I don't get it?"

He nodded a third time. "I know."

The three Marauders turned and walked out of the portrait hole, leaving behind a furious Lily.

"She's gonna get you back for that," James sniggered.

"I know."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I finally got onto Pottermore! And…I'm a Slytherin. That is all ._. And there I was, believing that I was a Gryffindor all my life...<strong>

**~Gella (ScarletFirebolt11038—review with yours)**


	101. Flighty

"Lily!" James beamed, throwing an arm around his girlfriend's shoulders. "How has your day been?"

"Fine, thanks, James." She turned back to her conversation with Remus. "So, what were you doing in Transfiguration? You definitely wasn't focused on the lesson."

James was surprised at her ignoring him. However, he held his tongue and stayed silent.

"Our Runes homework," Remus said sheepishly. Lily's eyebrows rose.

"Lucky McGonagall didn't see you," she remarked. James, slightly annoyed, tried to get a word in. Lily shushed him with an equally annoyed gesture as Remus spoke again.

"Yeah, I'm on the last page now," he said. Lily smacked him lightly on the back.

"The last page?" she laughed. "All right, 'fess up, what sort of cheat sheet are you using?"

"None, I swear!" Remus cried, but he was laughing also. "But I might've got a few spells here and there that make my life just a bit easier…"

Lily gasped with shock. "Remus Lupin, I'm disappointed in you! Hand those over, now! Or it'll be detention for you!"

"Sorry, I gotta run! Gonna be late!" he called over his shoulder as he dashed away, even though they were in the Great Hall and it was lunchtime. Lily stuck out her tongue after him. Then she turned to face James, kissing him lightly, seemingly unaware of his red face and clenched fists.

"So," she said, "how has your day been?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, this isn't as good as I wanted it to be. Pottermore, Y U BE SO ADDICTIVE? Anyway, Sapphire Leo, I really hope this didn't disappoint you too much. Like I said, my skills with spells and potions might be getting better, but my grades and writing are going in the other direction. Ah, fickle obsessions, how I despise thee. Hopefully it'll wear off after a while. <strong>

**~Gella**


	102. SLYTHERIN!

"SLYTHERIN!"

The cry echoed around the Great Hall. James's eyes widened; he was frozen on the stool. McGonagall lifted the Sorting Hat off his head and gave him a little push, and called the next student. With heavy, leaden limbs, James made his way towards the Slytherin table. It all felt like a dream—no, a nightmare. He _couldn't_ be in Slytherin. He just couldn't!

His eyes flitted to the farthest table, quickly finding the shocked faces of his newfound friends. Remus and Peter looked faintly surprised, having heard his declarations of making Gryffindor in the carriage. That Lily girl seemed to be relieved that he wasn't in her House. And Sirius's mouth was hanging wide open, and James might have even found it comical, if not for the dire situation he faced. Squinting, he barely made out what the dark-haired boy was mouthing:

"What the _hell_?"

"I can't agree more, mate," he muttered as he dropped into an empty seat at his new House's table. A few politer students were clapping half-heartedly; most were studying him as if he was a juicy piece of meat. Some others glared at him with undisguised loathing, even though he hadn't done anything more than cast a nervous glance at them. James gulped.

"Welcome to Slytherin House." A silky, snide voice snapped him out of his reverie. James looked up into the face of a blonde prefect, with carefully parted hair and the fakest smile he'd ever seen.

"H-hello," James whispered. A look of contempt passed over the older wizard's face, but he hid it well.

"I am Lucius Malfoy," he said smoothly, extending a hand. "And you must James Potter. We've all heard of your father, of course. A Muggle-rights supporter, is he not?"

Something in Malfoy's voice made James's fire spring up again. "Yeah," he said, "yeah, he is. And I've heard all about your fathers. Tried to pass a bill to make Muggle-hunting legal, did he?"

A few witches gasped at his insolence. Malfoy, however, favored James with a cold, tight-lipped smile.

"Let me give you a few tips, Potter," he said, his voice low and hard. "Watch your mouth and remember who's in charge around here!"

James stood his ground. "Yeah, thanks. I'll keep that in mind."

Malfoy drew back slowly, and with one last disdainful look behind him, returned to his seat further down the table. James exhaled and turned to a fellow first year next to him.

"Is he always such a snob?" he asked nonchalantly, spooning himself some beef casserole and trying to act as if the encounter hadn't shaken him at all. A pair of flat black eyes stared icily back. With another gulp, James recognized Snape, the boy he and Sirius had made fun of on the train. He closed his eyes and clenched his hands into fists under the table.

_I'm going to die_, he thought.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Wow, I've never played with canon that dramatically before ._. <strong>

**AND, WOW, WE MADE IT TO 800 REVIEWS? ARE MY EYES DECIEVING ME OR WHAT? OHMYGODric (I should stop using that, since I'm not a Gryffindor anymore…) ILOVEYOUALLSOOOOOOMUCH. Especially, Blue Luver5000, who is the 800th reviewer, and who is also great at dueling, but of course, not as great as me, the Slytherin :P**

**~Gella**


	103. Plans Don't Always Go As Planned

I hate him. I hate him, I hate him, I hate him. I despise him. I loathe him. I…ah, shoot, I'm running out of words to describe my hate. I think you get it anyway. I _hate_ him.

He's annoying, he's bigheaded, he's the most arrogant twerp I've ever met. Strutting around the school like a bloody king, breaking rules and getting into trouble everywhere he went. Cheeking teachers and maddening students; pushing first years into the lake then hanging them to dry over an open fire.

Unruly hair, ugly glasses, too-large hands, and a Quidditch player to boot! A despicable lot, they are. All of them. Including that good-for-nothing mate of his, Black. Every bit as horrible as him.

Dirty jokes and impossible puns. Clever but stupid twists on words as he tries—and succeeds—in finding a loophole in everything anyone says. Most of the times, mine. _Especially_ mine.

So why am I going on a date with him? you ask.

The answer is simple. I'm going on a date with him, then getting his drunk as hell, then pulling him into my dorm, then raising a pre-sharpened knife, and then performing the act that will save humanity from the danger of any future little Potters running around. It's a good plan. Nothing will go wrong. Really. I've proved immune to his charm for six years now, haven't I? What difference is one day going to make? Trust me on this.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, we can see that your plan didn't quite work out, Lily :L <strong>

*****warning: shameless self-advertising coming up*** It's almost that time of the year again, the time to honor the fallen of the Battle of Hogwarts. So look out for another story from me on May 2****nd****! If you can endure angst and angst and more angst, that is. And, the longest chapter—and will stay the longest chapter, I am not writing anything that long again—of Marauder Turned Muggle is up as well! It seems like all my readers died e_e Siriusly, I got like two reviews on the last chapter I slaved over. You want a happy Gella, right? So go read and review!**

**~Gella **


	104. Caught in the Act!

**AN: So, this one is a little confusing. I myself got wound up when I was writing this, so I hope you guys understand what I'm trying to imply here…**

* * *

><p>James strolled into the Heads common room, hoping that Lily would be there. He was no disappointed; her lovely voice drifted out from the direction of his dorm room. He was already starting for the stairs when he heard another voice—a male voice—speak.<p>

"Oh Merlin. Lily, are you all right?" Sirius asked with alarm. James's head jerked up. "Is that…blood?"

"Yes, it's blood!" Lily wailed. "What else can this red stuff be?"

"Sorry, sorry!" Sirius said hastily. "Er…I don't suppose there're bandages in here…?"

"I doubt it."

He heard his best friend sigh. "Let's get you down to the hospital wing, then."

James stood frozen, clutching the banister, as his girlfriend wailed again. "I can't! Not with that thing sticking straight up! I can't even put my robes back on!"

"I knew this was a bad idea. And we have James to worry about too. If he walks in right now…"

Lily laughed tightly. "Oh, he won't. Dorcas told me he had Quidditch practice until one. Now, is there something we can do about this? It really hurts, by the way."

"I'll have to…pull it, then..." Sirius sounded as if he'd rather eat a jar of bat spleens.

"Okay," Lily said in a small voice. "One, two, three—pull!"

A wet, sucking sound made James wince. At the same time, Lily screamed, a high and shrill sound that James hoped with all his heart he'd never have to hear again.

"DAMMIT, SIRIUS BLACK!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Sirius cried. "What the…more blood?"

"Yes, you arse! Now give me my robes and take me to the hospital wing! Oh Merlin, I hope Madam Pomfrey doesn't ask too many questions, that'd be so awkward…"

"She's gonna ask us how it went then go off on how she once did it too," Sirius snickered. "That woman is a work of art."

"Let's go. Ah, no," Lily moaned. "We're never doing this again. Understand?"

"You can do it with James," he said. "I definitely will never do it again."

The two were getting closer to the door now. James had worked himself up into a rage and was preparing to unleash it on Sirius and Lily, when the pair came out. James paused and stared. It certainly did not look like what he had been expecting.

Lily froze. "Uh…hey," she said lamely. "We were just, er…"

"I know what you were doing all right," James snarled.

Sirius brightened. "Oh, you do? Well, this makes things much simpler," he said to Lily. "Go on, go inside and take a look. It took us almost an hour, you know. Not to mention all the blood Lily lost…"

"I think you'll like it," Lily added. "Well, why're you just standing there and gaping like that? Don't you want to see what me and Sirius were doing for you?"

"F-for me?" James stammered. He was really confused. "What?"

Sirius sighed impatiently. "Just go look."

James stumbled into his dormitory, Lily and Sirius at his back and pushing him towards the bathroom. He stopped again and turned to look at them.

"You cleaned my bathroom?"

"Yeah," Lily said sheepishly. "And Sirius here got this accursed thing—" she held up his mini toilet plunge. "—stuck on a scab, and there was a lot of blood, and, yeah…"

"How would anyone get a toilet plunger stuck on a scab?" James asked, rather horrified.

Sirius shrugged. "Dunno. Would you like a live demonstration?"

"I'm good. So—" James looked from one to the other. "So you two weren't…you know…"

"What?" Sirius asked. "We weren't what?"

"Never mind," James decided. "Erm, thanks, I suppose."

"You're welcome," Lily and Sirius beamed.

James shook his head and wandered out in a daze. Once he was safely outside of earshot, Sirius and Lily both collapsed on the carpet, breathing heavily.

"He bought it," Lily said with relief.

"Yeah," Sirius agreed with some passion. "Wow, if he knew what _really_ happened…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Lol, I think some of you misinterpreted my AN yesterday. I meant barely anyone cares about my other Jily story, a lengthier one, anymore. I still get reviews on this one, of course, thank you guys, but the other could do with a bit more. Especially because of that 4,000-word chapter I put up yesterday. *Hint hint, nudge nudge* ;)<strong>

**~Gella**


	105. In Absence of Minnie

The Marauders and Lily walked into Transfiguration class to an astonishing sight: Professor McGonagall was absent! At her desk, was a towering witch with faded auburn hair, and resembling, in many ways, an angry bull. Her large, calloused feet were clad in thick-strapped, open-toed sandals, and she didn't wear the customary robes of the Hogwarts professors. Instead, she had on a flowery shirt the size of a small tent and a pair of white capris that were perhaps just a bit too tight. James raised his eyebrows at Sirius; Sirius smirked back. Both Lily and Remus noticed it.

"I hope you're not planning on making any trouble today," said the former. "Because neither of you could really afford another detention under your belts, do you?"

"You know what I could afford under my belt?" James asked her with a suggestive smile. "Go on, take a guess."

Lily sniffed and marched away. Remus sighed. If he knew his friends—and he did—then something was about to happen. And it's not anything good, that's for sure.

Once the students had settled down and taken out yesterday's homework, the woman stood up slowly.

"All right," she boomed. "My name is Professor Yates. Your teacher had left on urgent personal business, and I shall fill in her place for the next few days. You!" She barked at Peter. "Collect the essay that was due today while I take attendance."

Sirius jabbed James with his quill. They nodded at each other with a gleam in their eyes. Remus busied himself with making sure the other three had put their names on their homework, then handed them to Peter. Meanwhile, the roll call was nearing the first Marauder's name.

"Black, Sirius," Professor Yates read. Sirius raised his hand politely and gave her a neat smile.

"Here, ma'am," he said in a voice that was most certainly not his. She didn't even look at him and continued onto the next name. Sirius stuck out his tongue at her back.

"Pete," he whispered, tugging him back. "Fake a trip when you get to Davies's desk, okay?"

"Okay," Peter whispered back nervously. James looked questioningly at Sirius, who only shook his head and leaned back in his chair. James shrugged and turned back to the bit of parchment he was doodling on. Sirius watched as Peter circled around the desks and finally arrived at Michael Davies's table. With a convincing stumble, he went flying and dropped the scrolls in his arms. Professor Yates whirled around and glared at him.

"Pick it up," she ordered. Peter only whimpered and shrank back. She sighed impatiently (not unlike the snort of a cow) and snatched the parchments off the floor. As she bent over, Sirius performed a sound effect that he had long since perfected. A wolf-whistle from James told him that his mate had caught on what he was doing.

Yates reared up with a look of panic, hands scrabbling at the seat of her trousers, trying to find the non-existent tear. Sirius and James had turned away, appearing to be intently discussing today's breakfast while trying to rein in their laughter. Their new teacher's eyes swiveled around the room, and settled on Lily.

"Miss," she called loudly. Lily started, mouthing, "Me?"

"Yes, you, red hair and green eyes? Come here for a second please."

James could tell she was scared, but that didn't weaken the scorching looks she threw them one bit.

"Yes, Professor?" she asked.

"What is your name?" Both hands clamped over her arse, Yates was subtly edging towards the door. Lily told her. "Well, Miss Evans, would you mind supervising the class while I'm gone? I just need to—ah—take of something, and I will be back in a jiffy."

"Of course, ma'am," Lily answered. "Shall I keep a list of names for when you come back?"

"Yes, yes, that would be excellent, Evans. Now, if you would excuse me…" Professor Yates escaped at last, waddling sideways like a crab to keep the view of her backside protected from the students. Lily flounced towards a guffawing Sirius and James.

"I know what you did," she hissed at them. "I won't put your names down just yet, but one more time, and it's detention for you for the rest of the week."

"Yes, Miss Evans," James said mockingly. "Wow, look at me, I'm trembling all over now."

"Ugh!" Lily stormed back to her seat, while keeping a sharp eye on her fellow students. Soon enough, the professor was back and nothing had happened. James noticed that she was wearing the same clothes as before. Sirius sniggered quietly, twirling his wand.

"I trust that you were all well-behaved in my absence," she said gruffly. "Ten points to Gryffindor for Miss Evans's assistance to me. Now then. We are watching a short film on the uses and dangers of the Vanishing Spell today, and it should last the entire hour…"

She turned to tinker with the projector on the podium behind her. Sirius got up slowly, eyes trained on the tall witch's back. Then, with a jerk, he began to thrust his pelvic back and forth, in and out. James exploded into a fit of laughter, which he tried to disguise as a violent coughing fit. Thankfully, the teacher didn't turn around, and Sirius danced behind her, waving his middle fingers in the air. Lily was biting her lip, as if trying to decide between laughing and reporting him. She settled on a third option: turning away in a huff to not witness Sirius humping a facepalming Remus. When the teacher finally turned around, Sirius was back in his seat, innocently dotting bullet points for notes. She turned around again. In that instant, Sirius was back on his feet, doing the exact same motions as before. This time, she turned much faster. He almost got caught, but made it look as if he as simply getting a tissue from her desk. Even Lily had to grudgingly admire his fast reflexes and sheer nerve.

Sirius was at it again. Someone couldn't maintain their silence anymore and let out a small giggle. He couldn't stop fast enough and hastily changed fingers mid-flourish. Yates gave him a hard look. He blinked back. She harrumphed loudly and sat down at the teacher's desk. James tugged on Sirius's robes and whispered a suggestion. A wicked smile lit his face.

"I'm gonna save it for tomorrow, mate," Sirius said to him. "It's been far too much fun today already…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This actually happened to me. Just so you know that your beloved author isn't a crazy pyscho who comes up with these…<strong>_**interesting**_** ideas. Including the previous chapter. Some of you got it, most of you didn't. Read your fellow reviewers' thoughts and you will understand ;3**

**~Gella**


	106. Giving Up

That's it. I'm done. Done with slobbering after her like a lovesick puppy. Done with all the insults, the slaps, the hexes. Everything, over.

It's not like she'll ever say yes. When I put some heart and feeling into something, she ruins it with a simple, "fuck off". And I never used to care, just wanted to make something even better next time. When I close my eyes, a list runs through my head: first year, second year, third, fourth, fifth—oh, fifth…that was the worst one. Then sixth, and now seventh. So much time I've wasted on her, so little I got in return. Why does she always have to do that? Why can't she just humor me for once? Why is she so good at breaking my heart? Why do I _let_ her break my heart?

I'm done. I won't ever look at Lily Evans again. I will not look at her, I will not talk to her, I will not. No more stupid plans to get her attention. No more extravagant Valentine's Day cards. No more goblin-made lily pendants. No more hanging upside-down on my broom outside her dorm windows every night. No more boxes of chocolates and secret notes. Nothing. I am done.

Oh, who am I kidding. I love her, even if she hates me. I'll probably go crawling back to her and beg her to go out a week later. How does she do that? How does she have that control over me? Well, there's nothing more to be said here. Time to devise another plan to get a single, disgusted glance from those emerald green eyes. Because if her hate was a drug, I'd be long past addicted now.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Writing this made me cry. Well, the idea of it, of James giving up, made me cry. My portrayal of it? Not so much. I suppose after he keeps quiet after a few weeks, Lily gets fidgety and realizes how much she missed him and they snog and make Harry and all that…<strong>

**~Gella**


	107. Padfoot, We Salute You

"JAMES!" Lily screamed. A loud wail came from baby Harry as his father rushed upstairs to find his wife collapsed outside their bedroom door, a hand against her eyes and breathing heavily.

"What's wrong, Lily?" he asked, scooping her into his arms.

"Tell—tell your mate—" she gulped for air, and then continued with some difficulty, "Tell him to stop using the bathroom in our room! And to close the bloody door when he's taking a dump!"

"Ohhhhhh…." James understood. "Oh Christ, Lily, I'm _so_ sorry you had to see that."

"Me too," she said mournfully. "I don't know if I can ever look at a bottle of lotion ever again."

James's eyes bulged out. "What was he doing with _that_?"

"Unthinkable things," Lily shuddered. "James, I worry for Harry…"

"Because I dropped him on his head and now he's trying to cry out a lung or two?"

"Because his godfather is a morally-bankrupt, worm-brained—"

"Nah, Sirius'll cool down," James said. He then hesitated. "Won't he?"

Lily gave him a look.

"No, he won't," they said together.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Padfoot, you're the best :'3 <strong>

**IT'S TOMORROW, GUYS. Seven minutes of silence at seven p.m. for all time zones! Or today, if you're ahead of me here in Michigan. And the first chapter of Letters to Their Past shall also be put up! I'm scared. I haven't done much other than Marauder Era…**

**~Gella**


	108. Padfoot, We Salute You Again

I was in my favorite shop in Diagon Alley. The smell of books and brand-new parchment was my personal Amortentia. Today, however, the atmosphere of Flourish and Blotts seemed to smell a little better than usual…

"Hey, Lily," said a voice that I didn't recognize. "What, Evans, are you ignoring me?"

I glanced left and promptly jumped backwards. "Oh my Merlin, James. What happened to your _voice_?"

He looked faintly uncomfortable. "Er, hay fever."

"You're not sick," I accused.

"Fine. I guess I went through puberty over the summer," he muttered.

I shuddered. "And I thought it was bad before…"

"Whoa, mate!" Sirius popped up from behind a shelf. "You've hit puberty?"

"Yes," he sighed.

"And Snape washed his hair! Sorry, Lils," he apologized quickly, then went on. "I never would've thought it possible."

"Shut up," James mumbled. "Just because you came out of the womb with the voice you've got now—"

"You two are weird," I decided and walked out.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Happy birthday, Victoire. I was twelve before you are. I'M BETTER THAN YOUUUUUUU.<strong>

**Anyways…did anyone do the seven minutes? It was easy for me, because I just sat in front of my computer and browsed Tumblr xD Speaking of that, I'm about to put up the angsty May 2****nd**** tribute. Be honest about it, please. Point out everything that you would change. **

**~Gella**


	109. Introducing Lily

Lily and James stood in front of a fancy, iron-wrought gate. She looked nervously at him.

"Don't worry," he assured her. "My parents don't bite. They're just a bit of a stickler on tradition."

"Okay," Lily replied in a small voice. James pushed open the gate and together, the two walked towards the tall, imposing doors. She took a deep breath and put on a sunny smile, just as someone pulled open the door. A tiny, wrinkled house-elf bowed to them and scurried away. Lily looked interestedly after it, but a voice boomed from the shadows.

"You're late."

Lily jumped, clinging to James's arm tightly. He patted her back and led her to the living room, where she got her first glance at her future in-laws. Mrs. Potter was a large, impressive woman, the type that would make the toughest Slytherins run for mummy. Her long, black hair was up in an austere bun, and her lined face allowed no nonsense. Mr. Potter was small, reedy, and withered. His mouth seemed to be permanently turned downwards. The few strands of cornsilk-blonde hair he had were combed over a shiny bald plate and on his beaky nose perched a yellowed pair of spectacles. Altogether, not the most encouraging of sights. Lily gulped.

"You're late," Dorea Potter repeated in the rumbling, masculine voice of hers.

"Mother, the meeting is scheduled for eleven-thirty," James started.

"And now it is precisely forty-nine seconds past that. I won't have my and his future wife scampering to appointments!" she said. Lily shrank back, her smile melting off her face. James sighed.

"Yes, Mother. I'll keep that in mind," he mumbled.

Little Charlus Potter sat up, with some difficulty. "Is this her, then?" he asked. "The Muggleborn schoolgirl you've been chasing after for the past seven years?"

"Yes, Father," James said. "Her name is Lily Evans, soon to be Potter," he added, shooting a warm glance at his fiancée. Lily smiled hugely at them, her radiant personality overshadowing the gloom of the Potters.

Mrs. Potter stood up and gave her the once-over. "Straighten your socks, girl," she barked. Lily hastily reached down, but before she could obey the order—

"I never really did like red hair," sniffed Mr. Potter. "Too much of a temper, in my opinion."

"Father—"

"You're quite right, Charlus," Dorea mused. "Why, I remember one ginger—fieriest thing I've ever had the misfortune to meet!"

Lily was frozen, listening to their complaints with an expression akin to pure horror on her face. The Potters were not finished.

"And this one! This one is quite appealing, I'll admit." Mr. Potter peered at her with a wolfish smile, showing black teeth riddled with holes. "But, still, James, are you sure you want to marry her? Why not go for a nice blonde or brunette, like your mother?"

Dorea was still on a roll about that ginger. "—and all the boys were terrified of her! Now that's not right. Men shouldn't be scared of their wives. Don't you think so, Charlus?"

Her husband looked up. "Hmm? Oh yes. Quite right, my dear. You're not scared of this pretty little thing, are you, James?"

"Dad, Mum, stop insulting Lily."

James's abrupt manner seemed to drain his parents of what little geniality they had. With a sharp sniff, Mrs. Potter turned back to Lily.

"Where was I? Oh, the crooked sock. And that's not even close to the end of it! Nasty taste, I must say. What kind of slag would wear such tight clothes?"

"With such low necklines too!" Mr. Potter added.

"Skirt's too short—"

"—necklace is cheap—"

"—and with a severe case of spattergroit to boot!"

"They're _freckles_!" Lily exploded. She was ignored.

"She does wear a corset, yes?" Dorea asked her son, who stared at her in shock.

"Mum! Of course Lily doesn't wear a corset! And you don't need to talk as if she isn't here!"

"Well, you would do well to change that! We need to do something about this boxy figure. Absolutely no curves at all! That's right," she said to James's appalled expression. "Back in my day, girls clung to a post with a piece of wood between their teeth, and then—SHOOP! the corset is on, nice and tight. No tears and no pain! Save for some broken ribs, maybe. Yes, we'll get your pretty little bride suited up right away. Tighter than normal, too, I would think. We'll force some femininity out of you!"

Lily fainted.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: This is what would happen if James's parents were the complete polar opposites of the way I've been portraying them. I kinda wanted write this with Sirius and his family, see what the Blacks think of Marlene, but it just didn't work out.<strong>

**~Gella**


	110. Unpredictable

"How did you get that?" Dorcas gasped. Lily smirked at her, holding the Golden Snitch just out of reach.

"Nicked it," the redhead answered, mimicking James Potter's arrogant tone. "And we are going to have some fun with it."

"You're awfully happy today," Marlene remarked, looking up from her breakfast.

"Yes, yes I am," Lily agreed. "Now watch."

She set the Snitch at eye level and carefully coated it with a thin layer of pumpkin marmalade. Then, using her wand, she froze the wings in place and sent it over to the Marauders' table. The small golden sphere disappeared down the back of her fellow Head Boy's robes.

"Lily!" Marlene laughed. "That wasn't nice."

"You're cleaning that," Dorcas growled. "No way am I going to touch anything that went down Potter's back."

"Don't worry, Dor. Seekers wear gloves anyway, don't they?"

"Well, yeah…"

James jumped up, eyes wide and hands fumbling inside his shirt. Peter was trying to dodge his wild blows and Sirius was slapping his thigh in glee. Remus facepalmed. Lily and her friends pretended to be deep in conversation, but James knew who had done it.

"Good one, Lils," Dorcas whispered. Lily smiled. She stopped smiling, however, as something cold splashed against her back.

"What was that?" she asked slowly, her fingers experimentally grazing the wet spot.

"Pumpkin juice," Marlene answered. "Your shirt's still white though, don't worry."

"Pumpkin juice?"

"Mm-hmm. Don't hurt him too much, Lily, the match is tomorrow," Dorcas said hurriedly, recognizing the glint in her friend's eyes.

"POTTER!" Lily snarled, marching over. The other three Marauders dove out of the way. James turned to her with a smirk, although it was quivering a little with fear. He was not prepared for what happened next.

* * *

><p>"YOU KISSED HIM!" Marlene shouted with joy.<p>

"I don't even care that you took the Snitch anymore!" Dorcas added.

"YOU KISSED HIM!" Marlene said again.

"YOU KISSED HIM!" Dorcas agreed.

They turned to look at each other. "SHE KISSED HIM!"

"I needed to throw him off kilter," Lily explained patiently. "He's always the weird, unpredictable one. I wanted to surprise _him_ for a change. That doesn't change anything between us!"

"YOU KISSED HIM!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry for my lack of updating-ing recently, I've been visiting other fandoms. And I've just remembered how much I love Percy Jackson :')<strong>

**~Gella**


	111. I Like

"SIRIUS BLACK!" Marlene screamed. "Will you _GET_ your feet OFF of my chair!"

Sirius grinned at her and moved his feet a few millimeters back. "Okay."

"And stop kicking my butt!"

He looked surprised. "Oh, is this what this big, squishy thing was? Sorry."

"Did you just call her butt big?" Lily laughed. "Rule number one, Sirius, never, ever, tell that to a girl. Ever."

Sirius shrugged, replacing his feet. "I like big butts and I cannot lie," he sang.

"Curse my life," Marlene muttered.


	112. A Guy

She was distracted, I could tell. She was biting her lip, and she always bit her lip when there was something on her mind. Somehow, I'm so gone and lost and in love that I could decipher her mood from such a simple movement. Yes, I stalk her. Don't judge.

"What's wrong?" I finally asked. She looked up, her green eyes clouded.

"I—I wanted to tell you something," Lily sighed. I guess my surprise must have shown on my face, because she added, "It's what friends do, right?"

I smiled at that. "Right," I echoed. "So, what do you need?"

"There's this guy that I really like..."

I struggled to keep my smile in place.

"A guy?" I repeated. "As in, a _guy_ guy? Like, a member of the human male species?"

She raised her eyebrows at me. "No, a monkey. Of course a human, James."

"Do I know him?" I asked, already imagining how my fingers would curl around this guy's throat.

"Yeah, you know him. You know him quite well. At least I should hope so, anyway," she said.

"Oh-kay. Is he taller than me?" So maybe she liked tall blokes. No problem. I'm sure I can nick some Skele-Gro from the hospital wing.

"No," she decided. "You two are about the same."

Ah, thank Merlin. That stuff tastes disgusting. "Is he older then? Better-looking?" I said worriedly. "What does he look like?"

Lily studied my face, eyes wide and innocent. Like always, I felt myself drifting into those emerald pools, into a whole another world of their own. "Actually, I'd say you're about the same. Don't worry, the great James Potter's title and reputation is not at stake here," she joked.

That's the least I was worried about, Lily. "So what does he look like?"

"Dark hair," Lily began. I started thinking. Dark hair. Many boys my age had dark hair. Amos Diggory, for example, and no way in the name of all that is holy does Lily fancy him. I hoped.

"Light brown eyes," she continued. Okay, not Diggory. Diggory had gray eyes. Besides, I've barely spoken two sentences to him in the seven years at school. "With gold flecks around the irises."

"This is hard," I complained. "Can you just tell me who it is already so I can go kill that guy?"

"James!" she said.

"Sorry," I mumbled. "But it wasn't a joke."

"Dark hair, brown eyes...did I say that he's really popular?"

"Remus?"

She looked horrified. "No offense, but...no. He's not really, you know, my cup of tea."

"Tell me it isn't Peter," I begged.

"James, you are an idiot," she said. "Peter is two feet shorter than you, literally."

"Oh," I said. "Oh, okay."

"You know what? I've said enough. I'll be in the library if you want to try tackling the prefects' patrol schedule one more time," she said.

"Wait! Tell me!" I cried, slightly frantic now. "I need to know who you like!"

Lily Evans turned back to me with a slight smile. "You're an idiot," she said again, and walked out.

She said yes to Hogsmeade the following week. She said yes to my "Lily-I-love-you-forever-and-ever-and-ever-and-ever-and-JAMES-JUST-SPIT-IT-OUT-ALREADY-Okay-okay-will-you-marry-me" a year after that. And to this day, I _still_ wonder who the hell that guy was. She will never give me the straight answer, just the same mysterious smile and a light kiss.

But I think I've worked it out, somewhat. That guy, back in seventh year? It's Tiberius McLaggen.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: James, you're an idiot. McLaggen, I ask you. And for those who don't know, hazel is pretty much light brown. <strong>

**~Gella**

**PS: Sapphire Leo told me to make this great. I have failed that request ._.**


	113. A Girl

"Hey," James said. I glanced up from my book.

"Hey to you too," I said. "What do you want?"

"What if I didn't want anything? What if I just wanted to talk?" he pouted.

"No, you want something. Spill."

"You're scary," James muttered.

"Spill," I repeated.

"Okay, okay. So I like this girl..."

"Oh, okay," I said, a little taken aback. I had assumed that he was still...well, I had assumed that he wouldn't give up on me, like he said he wouldn't. Apparently not, then. "Go on?"

"And I don't know if she likes me back."

I snorted. "You're kidding, right? Any girl would cut off her tongue for the great James Potter to like her."

"Would _you_?" he asked.

"Aside from me," I ceded. "But you shouldn't be worried about that. I'm sure she's already head over heels in love with you, just like the rest of the female population."

"But what if she doesn't like me?" he protested. "I'll look like an idiot!"

"Just practice on someone you know," I said. "How about Sirius? You love him, don't you?"

James wrinkled his nose. "No offense, Lily, but you make our friendship to be something else entirely."

"Do you want my help or no?" I demanded. "Because I can think of a million things that's more interesting than the issues in your love life, this book included."

"Fine, fine. I will not do it on a male though," he said.

"Okay, say it to me," I said.

He took a deep breath. "Iloveyou."

I smothered the butterflies in my stomach that had emerged when he said that. "There you go. Now go tell her that."

James smiled at me. "I just did," he said and ran out.

And I? I returned to my book with the biggest smile I had ever worn on my face.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Yep, another fail. <strong>

**~Gella**


	114. No Differences

_ "Does it make a difference? Being Muggle-born?" _

_ "None," he replied, smiling. "None at all." _

I jerked awake. For a few moments, I was seven again, back by the creek, back with Severus. It seemed like a cruel joke that I should dream _this_, of all things, only mere days after what had happened at the lake. I groaned and buried my head under the pillow. He had told me it wouldn't make a difference. He had told me being Muggle-born didn't matter.

HE WAS MY FRIEND AND HE BETRAYED MEEEEEEE (RAAAAAAAAGE QUITTTT)

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Yeah, this started out pretty sirius and owing to my hyperactive ways, turned out to be this. Yeah.<strong>

**~Gella**


	115. Remus Goes Crazy

"Guys," Remus called. "Come here."

"Why?" Sirius whined. "I don't want to move."

"Get off your lazy arse, Padfoot. Your bum is starting to look rather big now," James said.

"Seriously?" Sirius gasped. James nodded seriously. Sirius (-ly) shot up and started doing jumping jacks on the spot, while muttering words of encouragement to himself.

James clapped him on the back. "That's the spirit! Now, go over to Moony."

Sirius hopped over to the table, arms flailing and legs spasming.

"Stop doing jumping jacks," Remus said, straightening the pile of papers in front of him.

"I don't want my bum to look big!" Sirius cried. "Look again, Prongsie. Is it still that big?"

"It's deflated a little, I think." James told him. "Now stop and listen to what Remus has to say."

"Okay. What is it, Remmy?"

"It says here," Remus pointed to the thick book in front of him, "that if you have a strong, firm handshake, you are more likely to have lost your virginity earlier than those with a limp grip."

"Oh, that's nothing new." Sirius grabbed Remus's unprepared hand in his and shook it wildly. "See?"

Remus popped his arm back into its socket and continued reading, "and study has proved that those men with steady grips have slept with the most women—"

"Studies are right," Sirius bragged.

"—and will be more successful in life than those other men."

"Woohoo!" James cheered. "What's this book, Remmy? It seems different from those other books that you usually read."

"McGonagall gave it to me," Remus said. "So I'm guessing it's pretty reliable."

James and Sirius high-fived each other.

"JUST KIDDING YOU FOOLS!" Remus screamed. "TODAY'S OPPOSITE DAY!"

"Opposite day?" Sirius asked.

"THAT MEANS WHATEVER I JUST SAID IS COMLETELY BACKWARDS!"

"Oh," James said. "So...what did you say?"

"I think he said that people like us are awesome and cool and stuff..." Sirius frowned with the effort of thinking. "But if it's opposite day, then it must mean..."

"THAT'S RIGHT, YOU LITTLE WHIPPERSNAPPERS," Remus said in glee. "THAT'S WHAT YOU GET! HA!"

James and Sirius watched patiently as their friend zoomed around the room, cackling madly. Then he shot upstairs into the dormitory. There was a muffled thump, and then nothing more.

They turned to face each other.

"Who took his chocolate?" James asked.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry, guys. I know my writing is wacked out to the point of madness. But I'm sick (in <strong>_**SUMMER**_**. Avada my life.) and I'm cooped up in my room with chocolate and my laptop, and...this is what happens. When I get better—and when summer break finally comes—there will hopefully be more meaningful chapters. Hopefully. **

**~Gella**


	116. Pajamas of the Past

It was a nice day, not too hot, not too windy. We were in Hogsmeade, and it would be the last outing the seventh year students will have for a while, since the N.E.W.T.s were coming up. I was trying my best to enjoy it. Of course, that wasn't easy, considering who I was shopping with.

"Lily!" Marlene waved me over. "Look at these!"

I peered into the shop window. "Look at what?"

"Those!"

I squinted harder. "Are those...pajamas?"

"Yes!" she squealed, clapping her hands. "Aren't they just so cute?"

"They're..._pajamas_."

"Who said pajamas couldn't be cute?" she countered. "Let's go get some."

"Hang on a moment," I said. "You're serious?"

"I'm Marlene," she corrected. "But don't you think we should get them?"

"Marlene," I said slowly. "I haven't worn pajamas since second year."

"So? I bet James'll love them," she said with a sly wink.

I stuck my hands on my hips. "Just what exactly are you trying to imply there, missy?"

"Great things, Lily, great things," my best friend intoned dramatically. "Now get _in_ the shop."

"You can't make me buy pajamas if I don't want to," I said, exasperated.

"I can, and I will. Why're you so negative about this?"

"Well, I dunno. I suppose I like my own pajamas better!"

"You mean those ones from second year?" she snorted. "What's so good about _those_, anyway?"

I suddenly felt rather protective. "Well—because I got them with my parents," I said.

Marlene stared at me. "That's the reason why?"

_She doesn't know_, I whispered to myself. _Nobody knows._

And nobody did know. Nobody knew how much I loved my parents, how much I missed them. How I hadn't even said a proper goodbye. Nobody knew how two Death Eaters broke into our little home last Friday, drunken to the core. Nobody knew of the twin flashes of green light that robbed me of the two people I cared the most.

Nobody knew how the pajamas from second year will be the last memory I have from them. Nobody knew, because I had not told them. Because for others to hear it will be letting go. And I will never let go.

"Lily?" Marlene seemed to know that something was wrong. I quickly looked up, wiping my face free of the pain that must have been there. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," I said, and forced a smile. "Really."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," I insisted. An idea hit me. "You know what? I think I like those pajamas after all."

"Awesome!" Marlene cheered. "You're amazing, Lily."

As she dragged me inside, I felt the hole inside of me close up a little. Maybe there was hope after all, for me and for the Wizarding World. Maybe, just maybe. But it's there, and I'm not going to reach it if I'm afraid of moving forward, scared of deserting my past.

And I _won't_ be, because it will be here, in my heart, forever.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Bah, this one's ending is so...rushed! I no like it :L<strong>

**~Gella**


	117. I Show Not Your Face

I've always loved my school. I loved the castle, the classes, the students, everything. But there were some things that I prefer not to be tangled in. Hogwarts is place full of secrets, that much I knew. I never thought I would come across one of them, the biggest mystery of them all.

I never intended to find it. The mirror seemed to materialize in what I had thought to be an empty classroom. Curious, I looked into it once, and that was that. I spent that entire night there in front of it, and the next night, and the night after that. On the fourth, someone found me.

I was in my usual stance, cross-legged, staring up at the mirror and wishing with all my might that what I saw could come true. Of course, that wasn't to be. I had read about magical artifacts in my first year, and this one had caught my attention. I knew I was going mad, like so many before me, wasting away for broken dreams and impossible hopes.

"I can see them too, you know," a quiet voice said. I jumped up, certain that I was about to be expelled and sent back home with a pipe bomb strapped to my forehead. But it wasn't a teacher.

"W-what?" I stammered. "You can see—_them_?"

James Potter came to sit next to me. "Yeah," he answered. "Well, maybe not exactly what you're seeing right now, but yes, I can."

"Oh." I was completely stumped. "Er..."

"What do you see, Lily?" he wondered. My stony silence made him pause. "Sorry," he apologized quickly. "I didn't mean to..."

"It's all right." I took a deep breath. "I see my parents still here. I see me and my sister. I see..." I glanced at him furtively. "I see Severus."

His jaw tightened. I winced. "I see my parents too," James said. "So I guess we're not too different there, huh?"

"Your parents?" I asked. "Are they—?"

"They're dead, yes."

"I'm sorry."

He shrugged. "It's fine. Natural causes," he added, "but I still miss them something awful."

"I understand." And I did. Suddenly, I felt closer to my fellow Head Student than I'd ever did.

"And I also see your parents," he said.

"Why?" I asked. Nothing would surprise me at this point, I decided.

"Because if they're still alive, you'd be happy," James said simply. "And my greatest desire, above anything else, is for you to be happy."

"You don't see Severus, do you?" I asked. He laughed lightly.

"No, I'm afraid I'm not that desperate yet," he replied. He was quiet for a moment, and I looked at him. For the first time, I noticed truly how beautiful his eyes were. I noticed how hints of blue appeared in the hazel, the gold flecks scattered around the dark irises. I also noticed the sadness.

"You shouldn't be coming here," James said after a stretch of silence. "It's not good for you."

"I know, but they burned our house down," I said. "The Death Eaters. They left nothing."

His arm slipped around me. "You're going to go mad."

"Thanks." I leaned back, into his chest. "I miss them, James."

"So do I," he whispered.

"Where will you go after Hogwarts?" I asked.

James took a while to answer. "I'm going to join the Order," he finally said. "And fight him. Fight You-Know-Who."

"It'll be dangerous."

"Yes," James agreed and stood up. "We should get back, Lily."

I took his outstretched hand but stayed in his embrace. At the doorway, I glanced back one last time. My mother and father's faces smiled at me from the Mirror of Erised. A sad smile, but a little hopeful too. _Go with him_, they said. _Go with him and you will be fine. He will protect you._

I gave them a smile of my own: _I will. Don't worry, Mum, Dad, I will_. Then I turned and together, James and I made our way back to our dormitories. And my hand stayed in his, the entire time.


	118. Apologies

I dipped a foot in the warm water and watched the ripples break the peaceful surface. It was the day before my first year at Hogwarts was over, and it was also the first time I had dared come this far to the edge of the lake. I've heard about the creatures that lived in here and wasn't too keen on intruding on their territory. But now, everything was still, even the infamous giant squid, for which I was thankful.

I hadn't had time to myself since...since forever. Everyone else was busy packing. The solitude was nice. I loved my friends, but peace and quiet was hard to come by with them around.

Just as I was about to head up to the castle, someone else arrived. Someone that I could live without.

"What, Potter?" I asked before he could even open his mouth.

"Nothing," he said. "I just wanted to see the lake."

"Well, you're seeing it now," I said shortly. "See you around."

He said nothing, but I thought I saw just a sliver of hurt in his expression.

I blew air through my cheeks. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry. That was mean."

Potter looked up, surprised evident in his face. "Huh?"

"I said that I'm sorry. Don't make me repeat it," I growled.

"That's the first time you've ever apologized to me." He still sounded awed.

"That's not true!" I protested. "I've apologized plenty! There was that time where I bumped into you in the corridor after dinner—I said sorry then!"

"That doesn't count," he argued. "You have to say that to anyone you bump into."

"I don't see you doing it," I pointed out.

He waved that aside. "Go on about how you've apologized in the past."

"And that time when I dropped a Knut in your cereal bowl. That was an accident."

He raised an eyebrow. "Sure..."

I chose to ignore his unconvinced tone. "And when I set your feather on fire in Charms class. I definitely apologized then."

"Well, that was because you set my feather on fire! I could've died!"

"If you had, I would probably say sorry," I said thoughtfully. "Only because dying's a rather big matter, you know?"

"Wow," he muttered. "I'd have to die to get a sincere apology from you. How nice."

"Oh, come on," I said. "You don't really believe that, do you?"

"Well, you sure encourage that way of thinking."

"Hey! I apologized sincerely just now!"

"True," he agreed. "But I don't think it'll be happening again anytime soon."

"You're right," I said. "I don't think it'll be happening ever again."

"How nice," he repeated.

"I _am_ nice."

"Bye," he decided. "Have a good summer, Lily."

"You too, Potter."

I heard him get up and hike back to the school. I stayed where I was even after the sound of his footsteps stomping through pine needles had faded away. If I was being honest with myself, I just had a sudden to urge to call him by his first name, for the first time.

But that couldn't be. Potter was Potter. Not James. Never James. Just Potter. Nothing else.

Yet as I finally trudged back to the Gryffindor Tower, I reflected that James really wasn't too bad a name. Only when it was followed by 'Potter' was it repulsive. But other times? Not at all. Really. And I suppose I could get used to hearing it with the 'Potter' attached too.

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><p><strong>AN: Oh my gods, what kind of arse am I to forget to thank you guys for 900? It must be the allure of summer T_T Why didn't anyone say anything? Here, yell at me now for being horrible. Do it. Now. <strong>

**And by the way, thank you, Sapphire Leo, for two amazing prompts and for being the 900****th**** reviewer :) **

**~Gella-who-now-shall-go-by-the-name-of-Horrible-Arse **


	119. Try, Try Again

**AN: Wow, you guys are cute when you threaten me ^-^ The reason I was gone for so long was because I just finished my other Jily fanfiction! But there's a high chance I'll abandon this again while I'm rewriting some parts of Marauder Turned Muggle and starting on my Lucy/Lorcan fic. Still, we're almost at 1,000 reviews and I'm really, really happy :D**

* * *

><p>"Morning, Lily," James piped brightly. "D'you mind passing me that delightful basket of bagels over there?"<p>

Lily gave him a strange look. "Um, no, not at all. Here"

"Thank you, my dear madam." James bowed backwards out of the Great Hall, clutching his bagel and trampling several other students. Lily watched him go with a bemused expression and turned back to her own breakfast.

"What was that about?" Marlene asked. "He's not trying to ask you out again, is he?"

"No, he wanted a bagel."

"Ah."

"Yeah."

* * *

><p>"Lily!" James panted as he skidded into the Transfiguration classroom. "Lily, Lily, I need your help! It's a life and death matter!" he pleaded. "Please help me!"<p>

"What is it," she sighed.

"Can I borrow your quill?"

Lily threw her shortest, ugliest quill at him. "Keep it."

* * *

><p>"Hey, Lily," James called and walked up to her. "Can you tie my shoes?"<p>

"Since when did you become a three-year-old?" she grumbled and flicked her wand. The laces flew around each other, tying a perfect bow above each shoe.

"Thanks Lily!" He jogged away.

* * *

><p>"Lily," James began.<p>

She glanced at his muddy hands. "Yes?"

"Will you do me a favor?"

"Not if it involves doing anything with your hands."

"Will you zip up my pants for me? My hands are dirty."

"...Get away from me."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Nothing to see here, just more of James's numerous attempts to get on Lily's good terms. I'm sorry this chapter isn't really aww-worthy, it's pretty hard for me to write an aww-worthy chapter that I like. Sapphire Leo, I tried to write your dare, but it just didn't click for me :c I'll try again soon and hopefully it works then. <strong>

**~Gella **


	120. This Doesn't Fit

"I love winter!" I shouted as I bounded outside. "I love snow! I love hot chocolate!"

"One of those things is not like the others," Dorcas hummed cheekily.

"Oh shush. You know I like chocolate."

"I do know," she said. "And so does James."

"What are you trying to imply, may I ask?"

Dorcas ignored me. "And you know, February is arriving awfully fast..."

"Dorcas. The New Year was two days ago."

"And a little birdie told me that Madam Puddifoot might be having a Choco-Fest too. Honeydukes' best stock at a discounted price. But you have to be in a couple to get them, of course," she added.

"Okay...?"

"You should go. Because you love chocolate and all, y'know?"

"Yeah," I agreed thoughtfully. "Yeah, I should go."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah! Hey, when's that Choco-Fest again?"

"Oh, I don't remember..." she waved a hand vaguely. "Sometime in February. James knows though."

"Oh, okay. I'm going."

Dorcas looked ready to burst with joy, but she tried to play it cool. "Awesome, then. Should I tell James or will you?"

"I will," I decided. "Oh, and one more thing," I said to Dorcas's retreating back.

"What?" she called without turning around.

"Since we have to be in couples, d'you think Marlene could pass for a bloke?"

Dorcas fell facefirst into the snow. She did not get up for a long time.

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><p><strong>AN: Leave it to me to be writing winter fics in the middle of June.<strong>

**~Gella**


	121. After the OWLs

James Potter wasn't having a good day. Hell, it had been a horrible _week_! The stress of exams, the final Quidditch match, and Lily Evans turning him down _yet_ _again_ had driven him to the breaking point.

Sirius knew how tired he was. Sirius also knew how important it was to keep up their reputation. And he knew exactly how to fake it.

James finished writing down his last sentence on the theory and usage of Cheering Charms and threw down his quill in a huff. Charms was not his subject—Transfiguration was, and that was tomorrow. At this rate, he was going to bomb _that_ test as well.

His eyes skimmed over the messy paragraph. Well, it certainly wouldn't be the first time he's failed Charms anyway. James turned around and forced himself to grin at his best mate. Sirius was tipping back in his chair and flipped James a double thumbs-up. He didn't look as worn-out as James knew he was; it had been a hard week for all four Marauders. Sirius hid it the best.

James raised his eyebrows at the hyperventilating witch behind Sirius, who merely rolled his eyes. James wondered idly if that was how Lily's friends felt whenever he was within her vicinity.

Hazel eyes flicked to Remus sitting two seats to the right of Sirius. His prefect friend looked rather peaky, and he had good reason to. The full moon was only two nights away. But James thought Remus was doing not too shabby a job of holding himself together for his friends' sakes.

And lastly, Peter. He was the only one looking as nervous and strained as James. But then again, that's all he always looked. James dismissed him and turned back to his exam sheet. His fingers itched for something to do; he doodled a Snitch and almost mindless started embellishing the letters L.E. James was adding little curlicues to the wings of the Snitch as Flitwick called,

"Quills down, please! That means you too, Stebbins," he added as the plump Hufflepuff who was rushing to cram one last thing in, flushed. "Please remain seated while I collect your parchment! _Accio_!"

The full force of more than a hundred scrolls knocked the little Charms teacher off his perch on a stack of textbooks. James cracked a smile. A few students at the front got up to help up, and his smile disappeared. A distinctive redhead was among them. A distinctive redhead who was partially to blame for his continuous bad mood.

"You are all free to go!" Flitwick squeaked. James hastily crossed out his doodles, stuffed his quill and the question paper into his bag, and jumped up to meet his friends. He met Sirius's eye, ready to burst with complaints, but Sirius shook his head slightly. _Not here_, he said silently. Not in front of the half the Hogwarts student population. They couldn't afford to let their careful masks slide.

"Did you like question ten, Moony?" he asked brightly as the four walked out of the castle.

"Loved it," replied Remus just as crisply. "'Give five signs that identify the werewolf.' Excellent question."

Even Remus was making an effort to be lighthearted. Well, now James Potter couldn't not, could he?

"D'you think you managed to get all the signs?" James asked in mock concern.

"Think I did," Remus said seriously. "One: He's sitting in my chair. Two: He's wearing my clothes. Three: His name is Remus Lupin..."

James and Sirius laughed, punching Remus lightly on the arm. Peter looked worried.

"I think I got the snout shape, the pupils, and the tufted tail," he said anxiously. "But I couldn't think of what else—"

"How thick are you, Wormtail?" James asked impatiently. It felt to let out some of his frustration. "You run round with a werewolf once a month—!"

"Keep your voice down," Remus said tersely. James sighed. The brief moment of fun was over. They walked towards their spot near the lake, under the beech tree. James flopped down. Something hard bulged from his pocket, making his eyes water.

"Well, that paper was a piece of cake," Sirius was saying. "I'll be surprised if I don't get Outstanding, at least."

"Me too," James said through his tears. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Golden Snitch, trying to look as if he had known it was there all along.

"Where'd you get that?" Peter asked.

James's tone was casual as he tossed the Snitch into the air. "Nicked it."

Moony had started reading, and Sirius was staring into the crown with a bored expression. Only James saw the tiny flicker of weariness in his best friend's dark eyes. He continued to play with the Snitch with Peter making up his usual adoring audience.

Finally, the incessant cheering got to Sirius.

"Put that away, won't you?" he asked. "Before Wormy wets his pants."

James was surprised. Sirius had always tolerated Peter before. "All right, if it bothers you," he said and returned the Snitch to his pocket and returned to his brooding. Remus and Sirius were bantering about the Transfiguration exam tomorrow and Peter was biting his nails. James looked around the lawn. His eyes landed on one particular fifth year Slytherin.

"This'll liven you up, Padfoot," James said quietly. "Look who it is..."

Sirius paused mid-word, holding very, very still. "Excellent." His voice was a soft hiss. "_Snivellus_..."

James rolled his shoulders. All the pent-up irritation from this week, coupled for his old hatred of Snape and a natural need to be _doing_ something made an inexplicable urge arise. Sirius, apparently, was feeling the same. He had drawn his wand and was twirling it in his hands, seemingly carefree. But James saw his eyes harden. A malicious light glinted in them as Snape stood up.

James and Sirius stood too; Remus and Peter remained sitting, although James thought he heard a tired sigh from Remus. He fingered his wand, putting a well-practiced sneer on his face.

"All right, Snivellus?" James called loudly, making sure half of the people by the lake heard him.

Snape whirled around and dropped his bag, one hand disappearing into his robes. His wand was out in a flash and his mouth was forming an incantation in the split second that he had seen the two Marauders. But James was faster.

"_Expelliarmus_!" shouted James. Snape's wand flew four yards into the air and landed a little ways away with a clatter. Sirius snorted derisively. Snape was diving towards where his wand had fell, when James cast his second spell.

"_Impedimenta_!" The action felt _so_ good. James could feel the tension leaving his body already. He cast a glance over at Lily and her group of friends as he and Sirius advanced on the wheezing Snivellus.

"How'd the exam go, Snivelly?" James asked. Many students were gathered around the three of them in a loose circle, but not too close, lest they be hit by a spell.

"I saw him, his nose was touching the paper," said Sirius viciously. "There'll be great grease marks all over it, I tell you. They won't be able to read a word."

A scattering of laughter followed his words. James half-smiled to himself. Meanwhile, Snape was trying to get up, but the curse was still in effect and he seemed to be struggling against invisible bonds.

"You—wait," he panted. His eyes were full of pure loathing. "You—wait..."

"Wait for what?" Sirius snickered. "What're you gonna do, wipe your nose on us?"

That drove him over the edge. Snape screamed a string of obscenities mixed with jinxes. Nothing happened, as his wand was still lost.

"Wash your mouth, Snivelly," James said. Huge pink bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth as James flicked his wand. He watched the greasy figure struggle on the ground as the suds choked him, foaming over his mouth and dripping down onto his robes—

"Leave him ALONE!"

James spun around, one hand jumping to his hair. Sirius looked around too, an eyebrow raised at the newcomer.

"Red alert, Prongs," he muttered under his breath. "_Extremely_ red alert."

And red she was. Lily Evans looked close to bursting with fury as she stormed over.

"All right, Evans?" James asked. Without meaning to, his voice shifted, growing deeper, richer, more mature. It did nothing to placate the steaming Lily though.

"Leave him alone," she snarled. Her green eyes oozed hatred just as intensely as Snape. "What's he ever done to you?"

"Well," James mused. "It's more the fact that he _exists_, if you know what I mean..."

People in the crowd laughed. Sirius grinned while Lily fumed in front of them.

"You think you're so funny, James Potter," she said. "But you know what you are? You're an arrogant, bullying toerag. Leave him _alone_."

James's brain worked fast. "I will," he said quickly. "I will if you go out with me, Evans. Go on...go out with me and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again."

Sirius noticed, out of the corner of his eye, a movement. He turned half an inch and saw Snape crawling towards his wand, spitting out soapsuds as he crawled. "Prongs..." he warned.

"I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid," Lily retorted. A large purple tentacle rose out of the water and waved lazily.

"Bad luck, mate," Sirius said. A flash of light flew past him. "OI!"

Blood spattered the green grass as James brought his wand up, and along with it, Snape. He was hanging upside down, robes over his head and revealing a pair of skinny white legs in stained underwear. James grinned at the crowd, despite the deep gash on the side of his face. Even Lily's furious expression twitched. Then she regained her cold composure.

"Let him down!"

"Certainly," James said, ever the gentleman. Snape fell into a heap onto the ground. He scampered to his feet, but Sirius shot a Full-Body Bind and he fell over once again, stiff as a board.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Lily shouted. She drew her wand. The two boys eyed it warily. They had, on several occasions, been chased by large bat creatures from that wand and had learned to hold grudging respect, if not some fear, for it and its owner.

"Oh, Evans," James said. "Don't make me hex you."

"Take the curse off of him, then!"

Sirius sighed and muttered the countercurse. Snape struggled to his feet. "You're lucky Evans was here, Sniv—"

"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!" Snape roared. Lily stepped back like she'd been slapped. Even James blinked twice, rapidly.

"Fine," Lily said coolly. "Fine, I won't bother in the future. And if I were you, I'd wash my pants, _Snivellus_."

"Apologize," James said, his eyes furious. "Apologize to Evans right now!"

Lily rounded on him. "No, don't you dare, Potter! You're just as bad as him!"

"What?" James yelled. "I'd never call you a—you-know-what!"

What came next tore at James's soul.

"Messing up your hair because you think it looks so cool. Showing off with that stupid Snitch all the bloody time. Walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys just because you can—I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fact head on it. You make me SICK."

She turned on her heel and stormed away.

"Evans!" James shouted after her. "Hey, Evans!"

Lily didn't look back.

"What's with her?" James asked, trying to mask his bitterness. Sirius rested an elbow on James's shoulder.

"Reading between the lines," he said wisely, "I'd say she thinks you're a bit conceited, mate."

"Right," James said, rage threatening to engulf him. Rage like he'd never known before. There was only one way to let that rage out now. "Right—"

There was another flash of light, and Snape was once again hanging upside down in the air.

"Who wants to see me take of Snivelly's pants?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I always thought there was something more to James's bullying of Snape. Being popular always comes with a heavy price, and these celebrity Gryffindors were no different. <strong>

**That and the fact that I'm willing to defend James with my life. Honestly, so many people hate James just because Snape and Lily's unrequited love was more tragic. I DON'T CARE IF PEOPLE IDOLIZE 'ALWAYS', JAMES. MY FAVORITE WILL ALWAYS (no sass intended) BE '**_UNTIL THE VERY END_**'.**

**...great. Now I'm all riled up T_T **

**~Gella **


	122. Icy Revenge

**AN: Sorry there wasn't an update yesterday, on the day of my one year anniversary with this account. I was brewing potions and dueling madly in an attempt to take the lead from the big kitties on Pottermore.**

* * *

><p>James punched the wall in frustration.<p>

_Why why why why why why._

Lily had made her relationship with Amos Diggory official today, as the couple waltzed arm in arm into the Great Hall. She'd date even that gormless Hufflepuff, but not him.

_Why why why why why why._

He landed another blow. A picture frame fell. James didn't look up.

He'd stopped hexing Snape. He'd stopped hexing anyone in general, really, unless they made the first move. He'd even stopped ruffling his hair constantly. And she still would not look at him twice.

_Why why why why why why._

That proud bitch, he thought savagely. She can't let go of her pride to admit that I'm not as bad as I was.

_That proud bitch. _

James slid down with his back to the wall. Tears pricked, for the first time in years, at his eyes. He'd called her a bitch. He'd called Lily Evans— beautiful, smart, kind, funny, warm, oh _so_ lovely —a bitch.

What had he done?

What was he becoming?

The dormitory door opened gently. His best friends peered in.

"You lot can come in," James said, his voice muffled by his hands.

Sirius tiptoed in cautiously, trailed closely by Remus and Peter. "Look, mate," Sirius began. "I know you're upset about—"

"Don't talk to me about that."

Silence followed. Finally, Sirius said,

"If it makes you feel better, I've rigged half a crate of Dungbombs in the seventh year boy Hufflepuff dorm."

James looked up slowly. Sirius waited for him to come around; he always did.

"I've heard that a nice big bucket of water in the morning can really invigorate the body," James said at last. "Especially when you're a fat arse in need of a nice and early waking. What do you say, guys?"

"I'll donate the bucket," replied Sirius wickedly.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: The brotherly love between these four is what I love most about Marauder Era :')<strong>

**~Gella**


	123. And Then the Whole School Knew

"Lily!" A shrill squeak make the Head Girl turn around. "Lily, James is—James is—"

"Catch your breath, inhale deeply, then tell me slowly what James is doing," Lily said kindly, patting the small first year gently on the back.

The plump little girl wheezed, gasping for breath. Then, as James Potter's scruffy head came into view behind her, she squeaked again and dove behind Lily.

"He was gonna hex me!" she screeched.

"James!" Lily admonished. "I thought you knew better!"

"I wasn't going to actually hex her!" James protested, looking thoroughly harassed. "Just—y'know—scare her a bit, so she'd return my gloves!"

"Gloves?" Lily turned to look at the cowering Hufflepuff. "You have James's gloves?"

At first, Lily's young charge didn't say anything. She was in awe: A civil conversation between Lily Evans and James Potter! No screamed insults, no flying curses. Lily's tone wasn't even cold!

Lily nudged her. "Do you?"

"Y-Yes," she whispered, terrified. "I didn't take them! My friend—Jessica—she did!"

"Why?" James demanded and took a step forward. The poor girl whimpered and hid her face in Lily's sweater.

"_James_!" Lily warned. "You can come out now, honey," she said to the first year. "James isn't going to hex you."

She stepped tentatively away from Lily. "Are you going to hex Jessica?"

"No," Lily said before James could open his mouth, laughing at his indignant expression. Then she did something quite unexpected. The Hufflepuff watched incredulously as the Head Girl pulled the Head Boy towards her by the tie and leaned in for a quick kiss.

"Not in front of the children," James murmured, smirking, when Lily pulled away. An angry "Hey!" came from the girl—whose name they haven't yet learned.

"What's your name?" Lily asked as she walked back to her previous spot.

"Emily MacMillian," she replied nervously.

"Well, Emily, can you get James's gloves back from your friend Jessica?"

"Sure. And I know why she took them." Emily lowered her voice conspiratorially. "She's proud to have something of the great James Potter's, you see."

Lily laughed. "Well, I'm sure I can provide a lot of something of the great James Potter's for you and her," she said, thinking of all the dirty socks and sweaty T-shirts piled up on his side of the common room.

"Are you and him—?" Emily asked cautiously. "_Dating_?" She whispered the last word in a manner in which you would say _soul-consuming illness_.

Lily fingered her necklace hidden within her robes, and the gold _J_ pendant that hung from it. Her most beautiful Christmas present yet. "I suppose you could say that," she said finally.

Emily's eyes grew as round as saucers. "People said that you hated him!"

"And I did," Lily said softly. "But people change. I changed, and so did he."

Emily made a face. "Urgh. Boys."

"Urgh," Lily agreed. "Now run along. Don't want to be late for class!"

"You can bet the entire school will know by tomorrow," James said as the little girl ran down the corridor.

"Yeah, well. We've managed to keep it a secret for, what, a month and a half?"

"That's good enough for me," James said. "Now run along. Don't want to be late for class, eh?"

Lily kissed him again. "Same to you, Mr. Potter. Same to you."


	124. Brace Yourselves, Guys

"Hi," James said, coming to sit by Lily.

"Hey," she murmured and burrowed her face into his shoulder. "Where've you been? I missed you."

"I was helping Sirius to the hospital wing," he said, stroking her hair gently. "He, ah, fell down the stairs..."

"He got into a fight again?" Lily asked, sitting up. "With a Slytherin, I presume?"

"Yes," James sighed. "His brother. They both got hurt pretty badly."

"Tell him that I send my love. That should heal him up in no time."

"It definitely helps me. But I'd rather not share." James said, pulling her into his arms again. She made a small, happy sound. He pressed a soft kiss onto the top of her head. "I really love you, Lily."

"I really love you too, James."

"I know."

"Me too."

And they sat there, gazing at each other. No more words passed between them, just light caresses and sweet kisses. Because they knew and understood each other like nobody else, and to speak would simply ruin the atmosphere, and break the magic.

* * *

><p>AN: How's this for fluffy, eh? I nearly died of sappiness while writing this, mind.<p>

Now, on a less calm and peaceful topic...

OH MY FREAKIN JESUS CHRIST A THOUSAND REVIEWS ASDFGHJKL; COME HERE EVERYONE AND LET ME LOVE YOU AND OH MY GOD DYING OF THESE FEELS GOD I JUST LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCHHHHH

To debrief, I just...I don't even know. Just the fact that ME, little old ME managed to get to 1K reviews—that's pretty overwhelming, you know? And this story doesn't even have a proper plot or anything, they're pretty much just stupid little oneshots, and there are so many more amazing and better stories with much less reviews and I feel sorta bad because I don't really do that much but still I have these great readers and reviewers and I kinda don't deserve the love you guys pile upon me and this is one great run-on sentence and my English teacher will murder me if she ever saw this and—

Thank you all so, so much for this. Words cannot describe how much I adore and love and cherish every single one of you. Thank you for reading every little drabble I upload and thank you for taking the time out of your life to review them, to praise them—even though they don't really deserve all that praising—and just thank you for being here, and reading this ridikkilusly long AN which I know not many people do because I certainly don't.

Oh my god, I just love you so much. Is that creepy? It probably is.

~Gella LOVES YOU ALL—one last time all right then I'm done—SO SO SO SO MUCH

PS: Aren't you glad I didn't bold all that? I hate bolding, actually. I think I'll just leave my ANs this way from now on.


	125. Ruining the Moment Like a Marauder

Lily woke with a start when someone tugged her out of her bed.

"James?" she half-whispered, half-yelled, squinting through the darkness. "What are you doing?"

Instead of answering, he threw her a jacket and her shoes. "We have to be quick, there's not much time."

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"I'll tell you when we get there!" James said, dragging her downstairs and out into the corridor. "Right now, just concentrate on running!"

"Running _where_?" she demanded as they burst through the unlocked castle doors. The night air was sharp and cold. Lily rubbed her arms through her jacket's thin fabric as she and James sprinted across the grounds to the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

Suddenly, James stopped. Then he whistled, long and low. At once, shadowy figure appeared from within the trees. Lily gripped James's hand tightly, until she realized that the big black dog looked familiar.

"It's you," she said in relief, bending down to pet his head. The rat on his back squeaked a greeting. "Where's Remus?"

"He couldn't come. A human would make too much noise in the forest," James said. "You two can change back now."

The rat and the dog twisted and grew until a pair of seventeen-year-old boys stood in front of them. "But your girlfriend is nicer when I'm a dog," Sirius complained.

"Shut up, Black," Lily said. Sirius turned to James with a "_See_?" face.

"Please tell me you got it ready," James said, ignoring his best friend's wounded expression.

"'Course we did," Sirius grumbled. "Pete, bring it out."

Peter scampered away, then returned moments later with a glowing, somewhat soggy-looking Galleon.

"A Portkey?" Lily gasped. "James, just where are we going?"

"You'll see when we get there!" James repeated. "Uh, Padfoot? Why's it wet?"

"Sorry, mate. I carried it in my mouth the way here," Sirius said. Lily made a face and reached out a tentative finger. She was just in time. There was a distinctive tug in her navel as she and James were sucked into the whirling vortex. A few seconds later, they were deposited roughly on their feet.

Lily coughed, rubbing her sore ears. "James, where—" she wheezed, then opened her eyes. "—oh."

They were very high up in the air, on the very top level of one of Europe's most renowned buildings. Paris stretched out beneath them, its sparkling lights and bustling pedestrians looking as small and insignificant as ants. City noises and strains of classical music drifted through the air. A calm river wrapped around the eastern part of the city, looking, at this height, like a thin glistening band of water. Bands paraded at its shores; boats and ferries floated lazily about.

Lily peered over the edge and immediately went weak at the knees. Several hundred feet of copper-hued, latticed metal greeted her. A vast stretch of green grass rested beneath the tower. It was, she decided, a rather high drop. She tottered back a few steps, hoping her face wasn't as green as she felt.

"So," James said. "You hungry?"

"What?" Lily asked.

"Well, I do think I see a table set for two over there," James said.

Lily looked at where he was pointing. "Um, yeah," she said, smiling. "Let's go eat then, since no one else is going to come along anytime soon, and it'd be such a waste of good, delicious food."

James grinned. "Oh, definitely."

"You know," Lily began as they sat down. "You've done a lot of really unexpected things for me in the past, but a late-night tryst to the top of the Eiffel Tower? This one really takes the cake."

"Well, you know me," James replied. Was it just her imagination, or did he seem not quite as at ease as he normally did? "Oh hey, look! Food!"

The golden plates had suddenly filled with delicacies, in the manner of the meals at Hogwarts. The two of them dug in, not minding the fact that it was twelve o'clock at night and one did not normally have a feast like this at twelve o'clock at night. They were teenagers, and there was quite a bit of food. When two circumstances such as those come together, all other rules of normality were abandoned without a second thought.

After a while, when they were more or less full, Lily set down her fork and observed the man sitting across from her. James was picking at his food, not eating, but tracing circles on his plate.

"What's up?" she asked finally. His head jerked up.

"N-nothing," James stammered. Lily raised an eyebrow. He never stammered.

"Well, something has to be. And you can either wait for me to get mad at you, or you can spit it out right now, and we'll see what we can do about it," she said. James let his fork fall with a clatter.

"We're graduating soon," he started.

"Yes, we are," Lily prompted. "And?"

"Me and Sirius were thinking of getting a place of our own afterwards graduation and all that."

"_And_?"

James swallowed. "And I was sort of wondering if you wanted to...well, you don't have to okay?" he said quickly. "It's just that—you probably don't have a place to stay after you graduate, right?"

"No," Lily said slowly. "I don't suppose I do."

"Right, and neither do we. Well, probably not Remus, his parents might have left him a house, and maybe not Peter either—"

"James. What are you saying?" Lily interrupted his rambling.

"I want you to move in with me."

"Oh," Lily said, taken aback. "Um, I—well—"

"You don't have to," James said desperately. "It was a stupid idea in the first place. In case you feel like strangling someone, kill Sirius, he came up with it," he added.

"No, it's not that," she assured him. "But don't you think this is all a bit rushed? I mean, if we were, I dunno, getting married or something, then yes, but—" She stopped at the sight of his face. "Oh, _no_. No, James, no."

"That's it," he whispered, an ecstatic smile lighting up his face. "That is _it_!"

"No, no, no. I didn't mean that," Lily said, frantic. "I take back what I said!"

"No, please don't," James said. He did a quick pat-down of his pockets. "Oh, dammit, I don't have a ring."

"James!" Lily begged. "Think this through!"

"You don't want to get married?" he asked her.

"We're seventeen!" she cried back.

"Lily, I don't know if we're going to make it to age twenty, with this war going on," James said. "If our lives are going to be short, then I want to spend whatever time I have with you."

Lily gripped his hand across the table. "It'll be a small ceremony," she said. "We can't have anything too big."

James curled his fingers around hers. "Is that a yes?"

"I must be bloody crazy," Lily groaned. "But yes."

"Yes? You'll marry me?"

In response, she walked to the other side and pulled him up. Wounding her arms around his neck, Lily kissed him.

"Did you ever think I was going to say no?" she murmured when she pulled away.

"Well, yes, sort of, when you paused there," James said. "I mean, it _was_ a rather abrupt decision, and—"

"You're ruining the moment."

James kissed her. "Sorry, Lils."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

><p>AN: Happy belated birthday, America :D<p>

This chapter wasn't really my best. I'm grounded and my laptop is under lock and key in my parents' bedroom. This was written pretty late last night, while I waited for Slytherin to win the House Cup—WHICH WE DID, BY THE WAY! TAKE THAT, GRYFFINDOR! HAH!

~Gella-is-a-happy-little-snake :D


	126. His Redheaded Comfort Food

James Potter stared dully at the empty bottle of Muggle whiskey in his hand. He should have gone home to the flat he and Sirius shared ages ago. After gamely putting up with James for hours, Sirius had finally left. "Take your time, mate" was all he said before gripping James's shoulder and walking out.

James reached for another bottle and found none. He cursed softly.

"Oi," he called to the general direction of the bar. "Excuse me..."

Someone slid onto the stool next to him. James turned towards the newcomer, expecting Sirius or even Remus, coming to finally drag him home. He saw a pretty red-haired waitress, balancing a tray with a few ice bottles on it.

"Thanks," he muttered, taking one.

"That's your sixth one," she said in concern. "It's dangerous to drink that much—"

"What's it to you?" James snapped, then immediately felt bad. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"It's all right." She was silent for a minute. "I saw your mate go about three hours ago. What's up?"

James swigged the whiskey. He didn't feel much like talking. "Nothing."

"You'll feel better if you let it out, you know," she said gently.

"You wouldn't understand." _Be glad of that._

"Oh yes? Try me."

James glanced up at her. Her jaw was set, her eyes firm. For a moment, despite his drunken stupor, he was mesmerized by those hard green eyes. Emeralds, he thought. They were emeralds.

"There's this...fight," he began. "A really bad one. And...two of my friends were killed tonight."

"Killed?" she gasped. "It's that serious?"

James contemplated this question. He thought of Mary, murdered in the dead of night because of her impure bloodline. He remembered Benjy's broken body, careless thrown to the side as the Death Eaters went on a merry rampage through a Muggle township. He mourned his former Quidditch teammate Dorcas, killed by the Dark Lord himself. He saw Sirius bent over Marlene's cold body, gripping her deathly white hands, silent tears dripping down his face. Only hours ago, Gideon and Fabian had passed, taking five of Voldemort's pawns with them.

"Oh yeah, it's serious," James said. "And they're not the first, you know. They probably won't be the last either."

"Wow." She didn't look at horrified as James thought she would be. She was either a good actress or was simply used to hearing grisly stories like this in the bar. "Are you in...gangs, or something?"

James snorted quietly. "You could say that."

"Wow," she said again. "And what exactly are you fighting over?"

"Oh, you know. The other side wants power over everyone, wants everyone to be like them, the best spot to take a potty break, small things like that," he said, and was glad to see that she smiled. She was pretty when she smiled.

A soft hand touched his shoulder. "Well, listen. If you ever want to talk, just call me." She was scribbling down numbers on a napkin. "I'm Lily, by the way. Lily Evans."

"James Potter." He looked warily at the napkin in front of him. The dark numbers were floating hazily in his intoxicated state, but he managed to make out an eight, and a one, and then a three. The rest he gave up upon. He was not a stranger to girls willingly giving him their number, or owling address, or whatever. Normally, they wanted nothing beyond a good shag from the legendary James Potter. James was not interested in those skanks anymore.

But this girl, this Lily, she was different. She's a Muggle, so she couldn't possibly have known about his swaggering reputation at school. He could have been the bullied student like how _he'd_ bullied his peers, for all she knew. No, this was not someone who judged upon outside appearances. James had a feeling that those green eyes could see right down to his heart. Plus, she was gentle, kind, patient, in the few minutes that James had known her.

And she was pretty. Very pretty. She was beautiful.

_She's a Muggle_, a little voice in his head whispered. He couldn't tell her anything without violating the International Statute of Secrecy. She's a Muggle. She wouldn't understand the gravity of the situation.

Yet she had understood him just now. She had understood him enough to trust him, to give her phone number to practically a stranger. She'd understood his need of comfort, not in alcohol, but in a real, live, warm person.

James grunted and turned back to the bottle. He didn't touch the napkin.

* * *

><p>He clutched the edges of the stained porcelain and vomited into the murky water. His stomach hurled and clenched, over and over, again and again, until there was nothing left. James collapsed on the floor, panting and shivering uncontrollably.<p>

Slowly, he sat up against the wall, breathing heavily. He felt as if someone had ripped out his insides, then tossed them back in then messily sewn his stomach shut. His head was pounding with a throbbing ache that threatened to split open his forehead. Wiping his hands shakily on his trousers, James held the sink for support and managed to stand up for a few seconds, before his head spun and he saw stars. He groaned and clutched anything he could and made his way through the dark flat towards the small Muggle telephone.

He made it most of the way. Then, within less than two feet short of the table, his legs gave out and James fell. Gripping his side, where a painful stitch had formed, he crawled towards the thing, pulling it, wires and all, down to the floor.

His hand found the number pad. Eight...one...three...

He dialed the digits that he had unconsciously memorized. The flat drone kicked in while he waited.

A few moments later, a girl's voice answered. "Hello?"

James smiled numbly through his pain. "Hello, Lily."

* * *

><p>AN: This chapter was very AU, if you couldn't tell. How did I do?<p>

~Gella


	127. He Likes Me, He Likes Me Not

"Do you think James likes me?" Lily demanded.

"No," Sirius scoffed.

"Why not!"

Sirius scrambled back a few paces, eyes wide. "Okay, keep your hair on and count to ten. Deep breaths help too."

"But why?" Lily whined, grabbing his arm and shaking it up and down.

"Ow ow ow—watch the bruise!"

"Oh, sorry." Lily released him gingerly. "Where'd you get it from?"

"Remus."

"Oh." She was quiet for a second. Then, "But why doesn't he?"

"I dunno," Sirius shrugged. "Why don't you ask him?"

"But what if—what if he doesn't?"

"Doesn't what?"

"Like me! Merlin, are you stupid or something?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows at her. "Why do you care whether he likes you or not?"

"I don't!" Lily shouted. His eyebrows rose higher. "Okay, okay. I really don't. I just want to know if he likes me or not."

"Let's make a bet, Evans," Sirius said, rubbing his arm. "You ask him—in whatever way you want—whether he likes or not. If you win, I'll—I'll listen to you for a month."

"You already have to," Lily reminded him. "I'm Head Girl."

Sirius waved that aside. "Anyways, if _I_ win, you have to wash my socks for a month."

"Easy—" Lily started to say, a smile creeping onto her face.

"No magic."

Lily fell off her chair.

* * *

><p>"A questionnaire?" Sirius laughed. "Lily, Lily, Lily. You are truly a nerd."<p>

"What's wrong with that? Here, get him to answer these, and I'll decipher his answers afterwards."

"Jamie boy!" Sirius cried, throwing an arm around the conveniently-passing James's shoulders. "Why don't you come over here and answer these, that's a good boy now."

"Answer what?" James asked.

"Oh, just a little something I put together for you..." Sirius shoved the dictionary-sized stack of parchments at him. James took one look and fell off his chair. Sirius hoisted him back up again.

"Padfoot..." James started.

"Shh...shh...don't talk..."

James sighed contently, leaning into his best friend's arms. "Okay."

Sirius shoved him away. "All right, first question. If Lily and I both fell into a deep river at the same time, which one would you save first?"

"Lily," James said. A loud cough erupted from the said Lily, who was pretending to read a book by the fireplace. "Because you can swim, right, Pads? But if you can't...I'm so sorry," he said to Lily. Sirius coughed smugly back. Lily mimed chucking her book at him. Sirius ducked and flipped the page.

"Number two. Who is your most favorite person in the world?"

"That blonde chick," James said thoughtfully. "What's her name again? Darlene? Mariana?"

"Marlene?" Lily gasped.

"Yeah, that's the one," James said cheerfully. Lily groaned and slumped back. "I _love_ her dog!" Sirius fell off his chair.

"Your most favorite person in the world is a dog?" Lily asked weakly.

"Yeah!" James grinned at her. "It's all big and black and fluffy and stuff."

"Let's go with a human," Sirius said cautiously. "In fact, why don't you just pick from Gryffindor House?"

"Human, Gryffindor..." James considered this. Lily watched him, fingernails being chewed off at blinding speed. "You," James said finally. "You, Sirius, are my most favorite person in this world."

"Ehhh..." Sirius stole a glance at Lily. "I think you'd be better off if you pick a girl."

"And preferably one whose name starts with an L!" Lily screamed. Sirius and James both fell off their chairs.

"You know what, Prongs? Let's skip this one and move onto number three, yeah?"

"Yeah, okay."

"Number three. Who would you want to have a romantic, candle-lit dinner on the top of the Eiffel Tower with?" Sirius scrunched up his nose and muttered from the corner of his mouth, "Really, Lily?"

"Shut up," she muttered back.

James shot Lily a nervous glance. "Do I still have to pick someone whose name starts with an L?"

"No," she said, barely moving her lips.

"Okay, my mum. Because she won't charge me for the meal."

Lily collapsed on the carpet. "Get out of my sight. Both of you, go. Now."

"Okay."

* * *

><p>"One more round," Lily said. "Obviously he's so madly in love with me that he can't possibly say it out loud."<p>

"And how exactly do you plan to make him say it out loud?" Sirius asked.

Lily's smile was cold and rather scary-looking. "That's where you come in."

* * *

><p>"James!" Peter squeaked. "James James James James—"<p>

"What?" James asked patiently.

"Come over here for a second."

"I can't, I have detention," James tried to explain, but Peter seized his arm and dragged him over to where Sirius and Lily sat.

"Peter, let me go—"

"It won't take long!" the smaller boy cried in desperation. "Really! I swear on my aunt's second husband's nephew's sister's mother's son's father's wife!"

The other three did some quick calculations in their head. "Your mum!"

"Yes!"

"Oh, okay then. What's up, Petey?" James asked.

"The sky," Peter said automatically. "Sorry," he muttered. "Erm, well, I bought some candy the other day..."

Lily started talking. "Hi, Sirius," she crooned. "How're you doing?"

"Fine. You?"

"Oh, quite well." She leaned onto his shoulder, still smiling and simpering.

"Is there anything you want, Lily?" Sirius asked politely, attempting to shrug her off.

"Just wanted to chat, that's all," she giggled. "Is there anything I can get you?"

"No, can you just stop leaning on me—"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, really—"

"Very sure?"

"Yes, I am!"

"Positive?"

"Negative!" Sirius blurted out. "I mean..."

James started laughing. Doubling over and clutching his stomach, he laughed until tears came. Lily stopped in her charade, and Sirius was so freaked out that he didn't even protest when Lily sagged onto him in a dead faint. James walked away, still howling with laughter. His bouts faded away into the distance.

Lily fell off Sirius's shoulder onto the carpet. "Why, Lord, why."

* * *

><p>"Last time," Lily begged. "This is the last time. If he still doesn't like me, then I'll wash your bloody socks!"<p>

"All right," Sirius agreed. "Only because it hurts like a mother when Remus gets started on the state of my hygiene. That scrawny little thing has some serious power in his punches, I tell you."

* * *

><p>Lily was determined. Lily was ready.<p>

The other three Marauders were crouched behind the doors leading to the Great Hall, spying on the lovebirds with a single pair of Omnioculars.

"Ouch, Sirius—give it here—"

"No, you have your chance already—Pete—back up—"

"Yeah, for about two bloody seconds before a certain git named Sirius Black snatched it from me."

"Who's this git now? Handsome, is he?"

"Both of you, shut up!"

"Wow, Pete, I didn't you had it in you."

"No, look! They're talking."

"Oh okay. No, Moony. I shall be the one to observe this. I'll tell you everything afterwards!"

Lily sat down next to James at the Gryffindor table. "Hi James," she said sweetly.

"Hi. Where's everyone else?" he asked, craning his neck.

"Oh, they had something. I'm sure they're coming though," she said. "Let's just start eating and wait, okay?"

James shrugged and dug in. Lily watched him for a moment, then deliberately dropped her fork on the ground.

"James," she said. "I dropped my fork!"

James didn't look up and just handed her another one from a neighboring plate. In his defense, they were serving pork chops, all right? I don't blame him. Pork chops are the greatest thing since sliced bread. "Here, use this one."

"But I want _that_ one!" Lily whined. "Get me _that_ one!"

James stopped eating this time. "_Why_?"

Lily stopped her foot. "Because! Just pick it up, will you!"

James heaved a sigh. "_Accio fork_," he said. The thing zoomed into his hand. "Here you go. Now will you let me eat my pork chops in peace? Sheesh."

Lily threw down her fork and stumbled from the Hall. The Marauders followed her up to the Gryffindor Tower.

"My socks will be in a bin up in my dormitory, Lily," Sirius called. "I'll save you some pork chops, okay?"

* * *

><p>AN: Well, seems like it's back to stupid and random chapters. :D<p>

Hey, I just met you, and I revived my tumblr after weeks of inactivity. I'm perfectpurplepalmtreepeople, so follow me maybe? Okay I'll shut up now.

~Gella


	128. Christmas Presents

AN: Don't blame me if this chapter makes no sense. I needed something fluffy and cute since I'm feeling very low right now. But I still hope you like it c:

* * *

><p>I sneezed as I made my way down to the common room. Cinching my robe tighter around myself, I took a sip of hot chocolate and instantly felt better. Large fluffy clumps of snow drifted outside the window as I settled into the armchair closest to the fireplace, drawing up my legs and huddling my limbs close together in hopes of retaining some warmth.<p>

_What a horrible time to get sick_, I thought sourly. At this rate, I'll be holed up in my dorm all day tomorrow while my friends exchanged presents and celebrated their last Christmas here at Hogwarts.

I held the mug to my lips and chewed a Snitch-shaped marshmallow thoughtfully, while running through my mind the list of presents I'd gotten everyone. Marlene, check. Alice, check. Dorcas, Mary, Remus, Peter, Sirius, all check. And James's present was currently floating in my mug. That inconsiderate arse. If I had known he was going home for break I wouldn't have spent all that time hunting for this pack of Quidditch Mallows (which are very delicious, by the way).

The flames spluttered a little. It was past midnight; the elves must have not replenished the firewood in a while. I watched as the orange-and-red tongues flickered lower and lower, then turned back to my mug. I tried conserving it the best I can, but soon I found myself face to face with the bottom of the mug. Sighing, I stood up again and prepared to go back to bed.

Suddenly, the fire sprang up again to its full height, dancing merrily in the grate. The mug in my hands had somehow refilled itself. I glanced around wildly just as James Potter out from thin air.

"Morning, Lily," he chirped. "You're up early."

"Don't _do_ that, James," I said crossly. "I haven't gotten completely used to that Cloak yet!"

"Sorry," he said, casually pulling out another mug from the universe itself.

I gaped. "How did you do that?"

He ruffled his hair, smirked, and gave me the answer that he always gave: "I'm James Potter."

"Oh, shut up," I yawned. "Okay, well, thanks for the hot chocolate. I'll be going now."

"And I revived the fire for nothing?" he demanded.

"James, I have a cold. If I stay down here it'll get worse."

"Problem solved," he said as a jacket found its way around my shoulders. I stared at it, then at him. He hadn't moved a muscle, and simply sat there, smiling. Finally, I settled on smiling as well.

"Thanks," I repeated.

"No problem. But now stay," he added.

"Fine, fine." I sank back into the armchair, trying to stretch my toes closer to the warmth.

"You'll be closer to the fire if you sit here," he suggest from his spot on the rug.

"But it's dirty," I protested.

James rolled his eyes. "You're such a princess, Lily."

I wrinkled my nose. "Ew."

"Exactly."

I considered it for a moment, then shrugged and slid down next to him.

James glanced over at me. "Is that a _broomstick_ in your mug? Blimey—I see a Quaffle too!"

"Yeah. It was your present."

"What do you mean, _was_?" he asked, eying my mug longingly. "I would've loved those."

"Well, I thought you went home for the holidays," I said. "What are you even doing here anyways?"

"I didn't. I was sleeping in the Gryffindor Tower for the most of break," he said.

"Oh," I said. "Why not here? The beds are a lot more comfortable, you know."

The one side of his face visible to me lifted up in a smirk. "Oh, trust me, I do know."

"_James_!" I cried. "That's disgusting!"

"What?" he asked innocently. "The beds _are_ comfortable. I'm just agreeing with you."

I muttered some things under my breath angrily. "Well, why did you come back then? The place was so much better and quieter without you and them."

"Glad to know that I've been missed," James said dryly, chucking a marshmallow into the fire.

"I _have_ missed you—just not your noise."

"Really?" He sounded surprised. "You've missed me?"

"Of course," I said crabbily. "Why is that so abysmally shocking?"

"No reason." He still looked awed.

I frowned at James. So I missed him. So what? Did he think that I still hated him?

Oh, _no_. It _must_ be that. "You do know...that I don't hate you anymore, right?"

James turned to me, his look of incredulity increasing. "Are you feeling all right? It isn't a fever, is it?" he asked worriedly. "You'd better get up to bed if it is."

I swatted his hand away. "I'm _fine_. But please tell me you knew that," I begged.

"Okay...sort of," he admitted. "But I needed to hear it from you too, in case I'm being too full of myself."

"You _are_ too full of yourself. It wouldn't hurt to deflate your ego a bit."

"Hey!" he cried. "My ego is loads better than it was! Even you have to admit that!"

"True," I agreed. "But it's still a big too large for my liking."

"Forget princess. You're a dictator," he muttered.

"I'll take that as a compliment," I decided.

"You don't hate me, but you don't like me either, right?" James asked. "That would be too much to hope for."

I snorted. "Your concept of me is still from third year, isn't it."

"Yeah, basically."

"And you think, that four years later, I haven't changed?"

"No?" he ventured.

"You're thick enough to be a Death Eater," I huffed.

James frowned. "Wait, you mean you _have_ changed?"

"Are you _joking_?" I demanded.

"No!"

"Actually, I take back what I said. Death Eaters are still not as slow as you."

His eyebrows furrowed deeper with the effort of thinking. "So you're saying that you don't hate me and don't dislike me anymore?"

"And he finally gets it," I sighed, mostly to myself.

"But do you like me?"

"What did I _just_ say?"

"Lily, stop talking in riddles! I'm confused!" James cried, throwing up his hands.

"Yes, you idiot, yes! Why else would I bother to get you a present?" I cried back.

He breathed what sounded like a sigh of relief. "Well, since you like me, I might as well as do this."

"Do what?" I snapped irately, then looked up. "Um..."

He was leaning towards me, his mug abandoned. I backed up at the last moment, and his mouth landed just shy of mine, getting my cheek and some hair instead. I stared at him. I was more or less paralyzed and couldn't make my mouth work to say anything. James frowned at me.

"Well, that wasn't what I wanted. Come here."

And then he was kissing me. Not a shy first kiss, a real one. One that involved him invading my space and taking my face with his hands. One that tasted of chocolate and smelled like something sweet and spicy at the same time. One that left me breathless, helpless, as his lips moved with mine.

I shoved him away, gasping, trying to control my wild heartbeat. "James—"

"What is it?" he asked immediately. "Was my breath bad? Should I have brushed my teeth first?"

"You—you—"

James drew back, looking hurt. "You're going to say that you didn't mean you liked me like _this_, right?"

I pulled him back. "Why would you think that?" I whispered as I kissed him.

"I dunno," he whispered back.

I rolled my eyes. "You idiot."

* * *

><p>AN: Let's hold a minute of silence for my laptop, which broke permanently about a week ago. All my documents were lost and I can't hope to get them back. That includes about five pre-written drabbles for this fic, an unfinished LucyLorcan, and several Scorrose oneshots.

My uncle gave me his old laptop to use, but I feel like I've lost my best friend since birth. This keyboard is weird and unpredictable and I've grown used to my old keyboard and basically everything else on my laptop. I'll do my best to write and update though.

I love you, laptop. I miss you.

~A very depressed and heartbroken Gella


	129. After the OWLs Part II

"Oi, Prongs!" Sirius called from the other side of the common room. "Can I borrow your Transfiguration notes?"

"Why? You're not going to study, are you?" James asked suspiciously.

Sirius snorted. "Of course not. Remus wants a look at them."

"Oh, okay," James said, relieved. "They're in my bag."

Sirius then proceeded to vault over a couple of second-year girls, prance around a group of Gobstones-playing boys, jump above an annoyed Alice ("Make fun of my height, won't you?" "You're lying on the ground, Dearborn." "Shut up, Black.")and then finally grabbed the straps of James's bag, spilling its contents on the carpet.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake," James huffed. "You're putting all that back."

"Yeah, yeah." Sirius pawed through the rolls of essays and books, then stopped at something. "You've still got the exam question sheet for Charms? I threw out mine ages ago."

"Well, excuse me for not having the time to chuck out a piece of parchment between eleven this morning and now," James replied dryly. "Now get the bloody notes and get out of my sight."

"Yessiree, Cap!" Sirius replied brightly, then stopped again. "Wait a moment. What is _this_?"

"What is what?" James yawned.

Sirius looked up at him, then down at the paper, then up again. A sneaky grin started to spread across his face. "This, my dear Prongsie. _This_." He shook the corner of the question sheet in his best friend's face.

James stopped yawning abruptly. "Give that here," he hissed. "Give it. _Now_"

Sirius was still grinning and holding the paper out of reach. "Never knew you were _that_ sort of man, eh?" he taunted. "What else have you got, a notebook full of 'I'm Future Mr. Lily Evans'—"

James made a lunge for it, but Sirius whipped back and James landed on his face. Cursing, he scrambled back up and stalked towards Sirius, rubbing the red bump on his forehead. "Sirius," he said. "I am begging you—"

"EVERYONE!" Sirius hollered. "James Potter draws Lily Evans's initials on his homework!"

The entire common went silent, staring up at him, then at James, then at Lily. James avoided their eyes, too busy imagining how good it would feel to have his fingers curled tightly around Sirius's neck.

Finally, someone moved. Lily shoved all her things into her bag, slammed back her chair, and stormed up the staircase to her dormitory. Sirius looked after her and gulped. James gulped too. Every pair of eyes shifted to Sirius.

"Um. Carry on," he said in a small voice.

The noise returned. Everyone was now talking about what consequences James Potter was going to suffer next, at the hands of the one and only Lily Evans. Sirius gulped again as James advanced on him wearing a look that screamed, "I will _kill_ you."

"Hey, mate!" Sirius called nervously. "Nice weather today, innit?"

"I will _kill_ you," James said quietly.

"Yeah, okay. Send Andi my love, eh? Tell my parents not to bother with a funeral and tell your parents I said thanks for being so kind to me over the years—" Sirius babbled, eyes squeezed shut. "Oi, if you don't mind, just do it already. Nice and painless is the way I prefer it—"

James dropped onto the carpet with a tired sigh. "She's going to hate me even more now," he said sadly.

Sirius dared crack one eye open. "Well, I dunno. I mean, it _is_ a pretty sweet thing to do—"

"I embarrassed her in front of the entire Gryffindor population," James snapped. "That does not spell out '_sweet'_ in my book!"

"True," Sirius agreed. "But I was the one that actually said it for everyone to hear..."

"Yeah," James said. "So she'll kill us both now."

They turned to look at each other.

"I'll kill you if you kill me," Sirius said.

"Deal."

A long silence passed as each mourned the shortness of their lives. "But still," Sirius said after a while, "you're serious about her, aren't you? I mean, you don't do that for every other girl you meet."

"Yeah, I'm serious about her," James sighed. "I don't even know how it happened, but I am."

"Yeah," Sirius said thoughtfully. "Well, it's never gonna happen now, so you might as well as move on, yeah?"

James turned to look at him, that murderous expression back. "You know, I've been meaning to find someone to practice this nice and tight chokehold on..."

* * *

><p>AN: My laptop really can't be fixed. I guess this is what heartbreak feels like.<p>

OTAY, MOVING ON. I'd like some dares, please. I know I have a lot to attend to, but I had them on this sticky note thing on my laptop which is broken forever, so, yeah. I'm really not doing anything productive these days. Sooo, NEW DARES PLEASH.

~Gella

PS: If you gave or plan to give me a dare and I don't do it, it's not because I hate you, it's because what I ended up writing was crap and I decided not to make you guys suffer by reading that.


	130. After the OWLs Part III

Lily rushed up the staircase, roughly dashing away tears with the back of her hand. She didn't even stop to pick up the things that fell from her bag as she ran. Finally, she reached the dormitory door and kicked it open. Her tears fell in streams as she collapsed on her bed. Potter! How _dare_ he humiliate her like that? What gave him the bloody _right_ to do whatever he pleased? And why oh why, _why_ does it always have to be her?

More tears fell. Not for the first time, her pillowcase was completely soaked through, and not for the first time, it was because of that Potter. The only times she ever broke down at school was always because of him and nothing else. That stinking life-ruining Potter!

A little while later, all cried out and a watery, sniffling mess, Lily sat up again, hiccupping slightly. She changed quietly for bed, thanking her lucky stars that she'd at least finish all her homework. She was about to climb into bed when the door opened a tiny crack and a timid Mary peeked in.

"Lily?" she asked tentatively. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Lily answered without looking at her. "Aren't you lot coming up for bed?"

"Well, yes, actually, but there's something we thought you might want to know..."

Lily groaned. "Please don't tell me it's Potter waiting outside with a thousand lilies and down on one knee begging for my forgiveness."

Mary cracked a smile. "You arrogant thing," she said. "No, it's not that. It's, erm, someone else."

"Black? Because he's no better than his mate, the two of them—"

"It's Snape."

Lily froze, fingers clenching around her wand. "Tell him I don't want to see his greasy face."

"I did, but he said that he was going to sleep outside the portrait hole tonight if you don't come down."

"Oh, for the love for Merlin!" Lily gripped her head and muttered angrily under her breath. "All right. Only because I don't want anyone tripping over his oily hair on their way to the common room."

"Wow, Lils," Mary said, regarding her with something close to awe. "That was an abrupt change."

"Yes, well," Lily said grimly, marching towards the door, "I'm through with making excuses for him."

"That's the spirit!" Mary called after her.

Lily made it downstairs without deterrence. People took one look at her face and scrambled over each other to get out of her way. Peter actually whimpered when she passed him. She made straight for the portrait hole, mind set on nothing less than a stinging slap—

"Lily—"

She whirled towards the speaker, hand raised, face stormy. A wildfire of whispers immediately picked up from the people congregated on the staircases. Lily glared up at them and they ran at once for their dormitories. James Potter, who was taller than her, shrank back from her threatening stance and gulped.

Lily shoved past him and kept walking.

"Lily!"

"What?" she snarled. "What is _so_ bloody important? Oh wait—it's James Potter as usual! _What do you want, Potter_?"

"I—I brought your stuff," he said in a small voice. "The things that you dropped on the stairs."

"How? The girls' staircase is bewitched—"

"They took pity on me today, I suppose," James sighed, dropping into an armchair. Lily narrowed her eyes. "Oh, all right! I had Sirius levitate me over them," he muttered. "He thought it was funny to drop my on my face once I was done."

Lily looked at him with a mixture of skepticism and pity. "I just can't—I can't believe you, Potter."

"Yeah, yeah." He swallowed almost painfully. "Look, I really am sorry—"

"Whatever."

"I would've never done that—"

"But you did."

"Sirius—he was the one—blame him—!"

"No, Potter. I will not blame anybody but you," Lily snapped. "I don't care if Black did anything. I'll still blame you."

"What?" James cried, outraged. "But he did everything!"

"No, he didn't! Is he the one who—who draws my initials on his test paper?"

"No, but—"

"Exactly. You do that. And that's why I'm blaming _you_."

"But why do you think that's bad?" James shouted. "Why do you think that's such a terrible thing to do?"

"Oh, it's not bad—not when it's sincere, anyway."

"Well, there you have it! It's _not_ bad, because I _am_ sincere!"

"No you're not."

"Yes," he said slowly, deliberately, like he was on the very edge of his self-control, "I am!"

"I don't believe you," she said angrily. "There is absolutely no way that you mean that."

"But I do," he growled back. "I mean it, Evans."

"You don't."

"_Damn_ it, Lily! Why won't you believe me?"

"You've screwed me over way too many times, Potter," she said softly.

"Oh, bloody hell." James ran his hands through his hair impatiently. "I did say I was sorry! But _no_! You don't believe me! Because I'm not being sincere! You think that was a joke or something, do you?"

"Yeah, I do," she said. "Because that's really all you ever do, isn't it?"

"You think that, huh? Well, let me tell you something, _Evans_," he hissed. "You don't know _anything_ about me. Stop pretending like you do, because you _don't_. Do you really have to be such a smartass know-it-all there too?"

There was a ringing silence between them as the words left his mouth. Slowly, James's eyes widened. His jaw fell open. His hands slackened, and all of Lily's books fell through them to the ground.

"Oh my God," he whispered. "Oh my God—oh no oh no—I didn't mean that, Lily, I swear on my life that I didn't—"

"Do you, now?" Lily said quietly. "You really didn't mean that?"

"No, I swear—it just came out—"

"Funny, because it seems like you've been aching to say that for a while now."

"No!" James yelped. "No I didn't! Please!"

"And..._'It just came out_', did it?" Lily quoted. "Call me crazy, but isn't that the same with what happened this morning?"

"Lily," James said, "I would never, ever, _ever_ call you what _he_ called you."

"And you expect me to believe that?"

"Yes! I mean no! I mean—oh God, I hate myself," James moaned clutching at his face. "Yes, Lily, yes. I wouldn't—I would never!"

"And this," Lily said, "is why I can't believe you're sincere."

"You're right," he said, head in his hands and shoulders set in a dejected slump. "I am such an idiot. Sirius was right. I've got no chance with you at all."

"You realized that five years too late, Potter."

"Yeah, I know." He sighed sadly and started gathering up her books, then handed them to her. "Here're your stuff. Tell Sniv—tell Snape I send my regards."

Then he stood and walked slowly away. Lily looked after him, face twitching oddly. She seemed to be steering herself to say something that left an unpleasant taste in her mouth.

"Thank you," she finally burst out.

"For what? I've caused nothing but trouble for you."

"For trying."

James scoffed quietly. "You don't mean that."

"You're right."

He gave her a backwards wave without turning around. "See you, Evans."

"Yeah." She watched his tired figure walk up to his dorm. Then she turned away, sighing. "I don't mean that, and yet I do."

And then she remembered what she came down for. Lily took a deep breath and headed for the portrait hole, face set in a determined scowl. Nothing he says will get to me tonight, she promised herself. Nothing.

* * *

><p>AN: Well, I was going to have a sweeter argument between them, but the all-out fight idea came to me and I had to go with it. I don't write enough of these anymore. Sorry if Lily was too mean to Snape to be in character, and for the 'smartass' part. I knew I should've found a more British and 70's word, but 'smartass' just seemed to say it all, so I used it :P<p>

Oh, another thing. I was so bored that I decided to read my own writing last night and I noticed, not for the first time, how _bad_ Marauder Turned Muggle was. I think I'm going to delete it and rewrite it, because it's—I'm just so ashamed of it. For those of you who've read it, please don't read it again after I repost it, I'll feel bad for wasting so much of your time xD But yeah. I think I might rewrite or delete some earlier chapters in this fic as well, because the word count—almost to 100K! EEK—is really freaking me out these days.

~Gella


	131. Chaos at Breakfast

"Prongs, mate!" Sirius yelled. "Get your fat behind over here!"

"No!" replied a distant yell. "You will _not_ do anything to my hair!"

"But James," Remus protested, "we have to. You're—you're _doing_ it today, aren't you?"

"Yes, _I_ am. Not my hair!"

"But you know she likes it when it's neater."

James popped his head up from underneath the Gryffindor table. "That is a lie!" he accused, pointing one finger at his worn-looking best friend. "She told me that she thought it was attractive when it's like _this_!"

Sirius eyed his mate's hair doubtfully. It was in every way a bird's nest, horribly messy from dodging away from a wet comb all morning.

"So just leave me be, all right? My nerves are jangly enough without you two on my case!"

"What if she says no?" Sirius asked, tapping his wand on his thigh musingly. James froze.

"She's not going to say no," he said, then hesitated. "Is she?"

"Well, I dunno, mate. What if she really did like your hair neater? What if she says no because you look ugly—"

"Don't say that!" James yelped.

"Sirius, please," Remus sighed. "Lily isn't going to say no."

"_Thank_ you, Remmy!" James cried. "Anyway, did anyone see the ring? I think I might've lost track of it somewhere..."

"Remus!" Sirius hissed as James wandered away. "Why did you _do_ that?"

"Do what?" Remus hissed back. "Why did you have to say _that_!"

"Because there is a very likely chance that Evans does _not_ like his hair that way! How can she? _I_ can barely look at it."

"Well, you've looked at it for seven years. One more day shouldn't hurt."

"But you're going to help me on this, right?"

Remus thought for a second. Then, "Yeah."

Sirius grinned at him. "On three, then. You take his left, I'll take the right. Ready? GO!"

"What happened to 'on three'?" Remus muttered as they charged towards James.

"One, two, three," Sirius muttered back. "ACH!"

James, who had looked up as the two figures shot towards him, backed up quickly at the last second. Remus and Sirius landed in a heap on the floor, one on top of the other. Remus, unfortunately, was on the bottom. The scrawnier of the two winced and rubbed the back of his head and was about to get up when something darted in and quickly pecked him on the lips.

"MY GOD!" Remus flew up, kicking Sirius out of the way. "What—how—what—did _you_ do that?" he gasped, turning to gawp at the innocent-looking boy gazing up at him with huge puppy dog eyes. "Oh no no no Black, don't you _dare_ pull that one on me. Was it you or _was it you_?"

Sirius jumped up, clapping Remus on the back cheerfully. "Keep your hair on, Grandma dear. It was me."

"IT WAS _YOU_!" Remus spluttered, choking on his own spit. "I—what—_WHAT_—YOU—"

He stopped ranting abruptly as Sirius gave him a huge, sloppy kiss on the cheek, then waved merrily to the other students, who were all frozen with porridge dripping from their spoons.

"Hello!" he called. "Fine day, innit?"

No one said anything. Outside, a cricket chirped.

"If anyone's interested, James here is going to propose to Evans today," he added. Lily, who was just making her way into the Great Hall, froze as well, green eyes wide.

James advanced on Sirius. "I still haven't found the ring!" he yelled in a whisper.

"Whoopsie-daisy," Sirius whispered back.

"What was that, Black?" Lily asked slowly, still not moving.

"Oh, erm. Nothing! Nothing at all! 'Twas a joke, my darling Lily-flower, only a joke..."

"Sirius Black!" Remus, who had more or less recovered, stalked towards him, cracking his knuckles menacingly.

"Sirius Black!" Lily shrieked. "Why would you _do_ that?"

"Sirius Black!" James yelled. "_Why_ would you do that!"

The three closed in on him, wands out and eyes murderous. The school had gone back to its usual business: _"Oh, just Lily and three Marauders trying to kill one another. Pass the jam."_

Sirius ran for it.

* * *

><p>AN: Happy September 1st! Did everyone make it safely onto the train? They've got good wifi this year though, don't they? Happy dare chappy for Carrot-Bunny, who wanted a Wolfstar kiss in front of the whole school. Aaand happy new season of Doctor WhoOoOoOOOOooooo :DDD<p>

~Gella


	132. Thoughts Regrouped and  Repressed

AN: Happy birthday to one of my favoritest reviewers evar, Angie Kangaroo! This is her birthday present :D

* * *

><p>Something is up with Potter. Something. I don't know what.<p>

He's changed...a lot. Before the summer, he was still hanging people upside down, tripping little girls in the hallways, nicking food and Snitches and everything in between. But now, he's not. Before the summer, he made poor Remus do all his work and bossed Peter around like his very own slave. Now, he doesn't.

You know something is up with Potter when he starts to break up fights instead of starting them, when he charms books back into their owner's bags instead of being the one who knocked them out in the first place, when he starts to visit the bloody_ library_ with me to do homework, for Merlin's sake. Something is _wrong_ with him. And I do not know what.

Or maybe I do. Maybe I'm just suppressing the thought. After all, it's been a long time since he last asked me out. A year and a half, to be exact. Surely he's finally seen reason and given up. I hoped, anyway.

I should've known better, because James Potter has not given up.

"Lily," he says, "can you please pass the fruit bowl?"

"No," I retort. "I'm not taking any chances with you and grape seeds again."

He rolls his eyes and _accio_'s a browned banana. "Are banana peels any better? Don't worry, I'll toss it when I'm done—not really tossing it though," he adds hastily. "Eurgh. This is still edible, right?"

"If it is, you wouldn't know. You always leave the bad ones for the house-elves to take away."

He ignores me, taking a big bite and turning back to his scroll of parchment—which is longer than mine. I eye it. Small, cramped handwriting fills the page. I glance down at my own. It was more spaced out than his.

"Which essay is that?" I ask, a tad suspiciously.

"The Potions one."

"That's due next Monday."

Potter looks up at me, eyes wide with (probably faked) innocence. "Yeah, I know."

I sigh. "Stop overworking Remus like this," I tell him. "He's got his own papers to do too, you know, and they're probably due before _this_ one."

He frowns at this. "Remus? Why Re—oh. Well, you do know that I wrote this, right?" he asks me, brandishing his quill for extra effect. I snort and turn away from him.

"As if. Your attention span isn't nearly as long as it takes to write that much."

This time, he sighs, a quiet little sound. It is nothing like his usual snarky, impatient, repulsively loud noise. "Go back to your homework, Lily."

Oh. _Oh_. Now he's reprimanding _me_? He, who had never done an honest day—no, not even an _hour_ of work, was telling _me_ to go back to mine. _Who_ does he think he is?

I don't say this out loud, settling for a loud harrumph instead. He hums a little tune softly, softly enough that I can actually concentrate over it, unlike his obnoxious whistling. I hate it when anyone around me whistles, and he knows that. I almost smile. Almost.

And then, something hit me. Quite literally hit me. It isn't his banana peel, which is what I'd suspected, because it is sitting nicely, neatly on the table next to his hand. It isn't anything he could've thrown either, because said hand is moving rapidly across parchment, stopping now and then to regroup his thoughts. James Potter does not regroup thoughts. He rushes through things, flings ideas around. _I_ regroup thoughts. Remus regroups thoughts. James does not.

And that something came again. In my assessment of his calmness, that something has found another thread of detail to hold on to. I am not moving, but inside I'm a whirlwind of revelations and realizations. I should've seen this coming. I should have known.

The neat dormitory, the clean, crisp shirts, the kind tone and warm eyes. The newfound sense of studiousness, the discarding of his old bullying instincts, the cleansing of his very soul—they add up to something. Something that I now know. Something that I have known for a long time.

I grind my teeth together. So he hasn't changed after all. It was all a mask, a charade to get on my good side. And it nearly worked. I wince at my own stupidity as my almost-smile flashes through my head.

There is no way I could do anything after this. I glare at the table, at my shorter-than-his essay, at the bowl of fresh, pretty fruit, at Potter himself, still humming, still writing. My teeth sink into the flesh of my lower lip. In my anger, I slightly overdo it and mutter a curse as blood seeps out.

He glances up again. "You all right, Lily?"

"Yes," I say coldly, turning my back on him and rubbing the bleeding spot. It's going to develop into a sore now, and it was entirely _his_ fault. I want to go up to my dorm and try my best to heal it, but my homework isn't finished and I don't want to come down here again. So I wait for him to go first.

But he doesn't. I watch incredulously as he rolls up the Potions essay, pull out a fresh scroll, dips his quill into ink again, and starts on another one. Transfiguration, I guess from the title: An Overview on Vanish Objects. His best subject. Good. Maybe now he'll finish quickly and leave me to do mine.

Indeed, he is done much faster this time. He stows it in his bag—_and takes out yet another scroll_. I start to worry. It's getting rather late and I have four papers to write, two of which is due the day after tomorrow and is of my least favorite class. _Professor Merrythought will _not_ be pleased_, I fret to myself. _Oh, damn Potter and his stupid schemes_!

He frowns a lot during this one, so it must be Charms. I register a tiny bit of satisfaction in this. He is bad at Charms like I am bad at Defense. Usually he comes to ask me to help him, but tonight he doesn't, going right along with his little plan. Honestly, is he really that stupid? _It's not going to work_. He might as well as stop now and save himself the misery of being good.

"What?" he asks, interrupting my train of thought.

"What?" I snap back.

"You said 'stop'," he says. "If the sound of me breathing is bothering you, I'll move to the library."

I prepare myself to snarl at him, until I notice how guileless and sincere his words were. They carried not a single drop of sarcasm, as if he really would go if I said he breathed too loud. I growl in frustration.

"Stop," I say again, this time consciously. "Just—just _stop_."

"You want me to stop breathing?"

"No, Potter. I'm being very serious right now. Stop with the act already."

"What act?" He looks very confused. I also happen to know that he can be a very good actor at times.

"You _know_ what," I hiss. "Stop pretending to be polite to professors. Stop trying to do your own homework. Stop! Just go back to your sloppy, normal ways! I don't care what you do, it's not going to happen!"

"Pretending?" he repeats dumbly. "I'm not pretending to do anything."

"Oh, don't lie! If you want even the tiniest of chances with me, stop lying!"

He doesn't say anything for a moment, and I am giving myself a mental pat on the back when suddenly he stands up quickly, upsetting his ink pot.

"I want a chance with you, huh?"

"Well, obviously! Isn't that what all this—?"

"My parents died," he says. His voice is quiet, so quiet that I can barely hear it. But I did hear.

"Oh—well—I'm sorry, but—"

"The people that killed them were a bit like how I was," he continues in that same voice. "They were very rude to my mother and threw my father out of the way when he tried to defend her."

I stay silent, wondering where this was going. I have a slight idea, but I suppress it again. He doesn't look at me, just the carpet. His hands are clenched into fists at his side.

"I was upstairs, I think, and I don't remember when they got there, just this thud of the door breaking down and a scream of—of _pain_. It was Mum's. Then Dad's yell, and his cry of pain too. The two...they were laughing and using Dark Magic...and it just went on like that for—I don't even know how long. It was so horrible, to hear your parents cry and groan like that...

"They got bored a while later, probably because my parents weren't making much noise anymore. I remember..." he stops for a moment. My horror increases with every word he speaks and I want to clamp my hands over my ears, but he goes on. "I—I remember my father—he was lying on the ground, not moving, like it hurt to breathe. And my Mum was just...gasping and bleeding..."

He looks up, a desolate sort of light in his eyes. "I owled the Ministry and some Aurors came right away, before those two could get away. And I really, really wanted to punch them, or just hurt them in any way I can, but—"

A teardrop falls and streaks his shirt. I stare unseeingly at the wet trail it left behind. He hastily dashes them away with the back of his hand and clears his throat.

"They took the Death Eaters away," he says, sounding like he was forcing every single word out, "and I never even learned their names. I don't know who killed my mother and father."

I am numb, absolutely numb. I can't move or make myself say anything. How can I, after hearing something like that? Suddenly, I regret confronting him about his new self. Devastated, I fall back into my armchair, staring at the opposite wall with wide, frozen eyes.

Unlike me, he steps forward, until he's in front of me. The emptiness in his eyes has given away to something else: a dark, frightening fire. I stare up at him, unsure of what to do.

"I wanted to be a different person this year because of that," he says. "Because it was sort of like what I do, isn't it?"

"No," I manage to whisper. "No—"

"Well, yeah, I'm not going around killing people for fun or anything, but I _was_ doing same things of the same concept. You remember Denny Robinson?" he asks suddenly.

"Yes..."

"And how I 'accidentally'—" his fingers sketch sarcastic quotes in the air. The very same thing I had done last year when James _accidentally_ "—pushed him into the lake? Well, that was the same thing. He didn't do anything to me. But I did that to him. He got hypothermia later. Because I decided that it would be amusing to shove a second-year into the lake."

"James—"

"And, you know, becoming Head Boy helped too. I'm one of the head students of the school, it's normal that I try to help others. And," he adds, "one of my first thoughts was that sharing a tower with you wouldn't be half-bad either."

I open my mouth and stutter something. "I—I—"

"You. And _you_." The way he says that doesn't sound good. "You, being the modest and humble Lily Evans that you are, naturally assumed that _this_, just like everything else, was about _you_."

"I didn't—"

"Because it's just so obvious! Why else would stinking toerag Potter change for the better? Well of course it's for me! Why would he suddenly be so nice and polite? Because I like nice and polite boys! Heavens forbid it's because of anything else!" James glares at me with a look that I usually reserve for him. A look of pure, undisguised loathing. Every single muscle in my body is stiff, and I am a tense and trembling mess.

"I'm sorry," I croak. "I—I didn't know!"

He leans forward, until his face was only inches from mine. "No, you did not know. And you still don't! Face it, Evans, you _don't_ know everything there is to know in the world, not even close," he hisses. "Only Merlin knows why you're still so attractive to me."

I shrink into the corner of the chair. "_At least he still fancies you_," a vile little voice whispers at the edge of my mind.

"Actually, no," he says suddenly, backing up. "No, I'm done. Why would I want to be with such a vain, self-assuming woman anyway? I'm done."

I watch as James Potter storms away from me and out the portrait hole. It slams with a loud, angry noise, followed by heavy footfalls running away from the common room. And I sit there brokenly as what just passed between us returns to haunt me.

* * *

><p>AN: Wow, angsty, huh? This tense was hard to write, because it started sounding like The Hunger Games after a while and I had to remind myself to use contractions. How was it though? Answer honestly and don't give a single damn about my feelings :D No, really. Do it.<p>

~Gella


	133. Promises Between Evanses

AN: This is SeekerForLife's dare, in which Petunia is also a witch :3

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><p>Two girls made their way down the corridor, both with heavy bags slung over their shoulders and carrying their school sweaters in their hands. Their hair, one a vivid red and the other a rich chocolate, were plastered to their foreheads in the humid air. It didn't help that everyone else were jostling <em>against<em> them, heading for the Great Hall while the Evans sisters were on their way to outside.

"Damn this summer heat," the older of the two groaned, mopping her forehead. "I'd rather have my water in a goblet, instead of it going up my nose with every breath, thanks."

"Mum will have your neck for saying that word," Lily said dryly. "But otherwise, I agree. They ought to install some Muggle fans around here."

"Oh well. This is my last year here anyway. I guess I'll have to endure it."

"I've got two more years. Maybe my headstone will read, 'Death by humidity'," Lily mused thoughtfully. They walked onto the grounds. Petunia charmed a checkered blanket into place and Lily placed their dinner basket on it. She peered in, then came back up with a look of delight. "Oh wow. You got us some of those buttered rolls?"

"Yeah," laughed Petunia. "I know how much you Gryffindors like those."

"You lucky Slytherin. How come they never have these at our table?" Lily asked, taking a big bite. "Holy Merlin. That tastes like _heaven_."

Tuney watched her with amusement. "Enjoy it while it lasts, little sister. I'll be stuck with ordinary Muggle food at this time next year."

"Oh, I don't know. I miss Mum's cooking."

Petunia took a sandwich from the basket, picking at the crust of the bread slices. "I can't believe they're making me get a Muggle job," she said sadly, sprinkling crumbs on the grass. "I mean, I didn't go through all this magical training to be stuck at a desk typing on some of those computer things all day."

"They miss you," Lily replied. "I don't think they ever bargained on both their daughters being witches."

"And then Professor Dumbledore too. Just because I'm seventeen, doesn't mean I need to leave the school! I'm only in my fifth year!" Petunia raved. "I know it was nice enough of him to let me in with you as well, but still..."

"Maybe you should show him how good you are at magic," Lily suggested. "You did surprise everyone when a wand actually chose you, you know."

"Nah," Petunia sighed. "I don't think it's him pulling the strings anyway. It's probably those school governors."

Her sister made a face. "Yeah. That Lucius Malfoy's father is definitely behind everything."

"Lucius?" Petunia squeaked, then blushed and cleared her throat. "I mean, his father's on the board?"

"Yeah, why?" Then Lily realized what had just happened. "Oh no. Oh _no_, Tuney. Don't tell me you've gone and fallen for _Malfoy_."

"I may or may not have," she said frostily, but a small smile was peeking through her scowl. "All right, fine, I have."

"How?" Lily demanded. "He graduated two years ago!"

"But he visits sometimes," Tuney confided. "Around once a month, he'd come back to the common room and grab a couple of other Slytherins and they'd talk in really low voices in a corner. Your greasy friend is always one of them," she added.

"Severus?" Lily whispered. "Oh no! He can't go parading around with Malfoy! That git is going to turn him evil!"

"I wish I were one of them," Petunia sighed.

"No! Don't even think about it! He'll never let you in!"

"Why not?" Petunia asked, instantly alert. "Tell me why not, Lily."

Lily groaned, throwing an arm across her face. "Why him, Petunia? Why Malfoy?"

"He isn't really that bad!" Petunia protested earnestly. "Just a little pompous and—and—oh all right—_very_ cold and distant, but that aside—"

"He hates people like us, d'you know that?" Lily asked angrily. "He comes from a family of wizards and witches who only marry wizards and witches. They think we Muggleborns, and even half-bloods, are like a _subspecies_ or something!"

"But can't you see how attractive someone like him is? He's so elegant and gentlemanly and mysterious..." Petunia's eyes grew dreamy. Lily growled and smacked herself on the head.

"Stop wasting your time on him! He'll never even look at a Muggleborn, let alone talk to you," she said impatiently.

"I'll change that," Petunia said confidently. "I'll make him see that we're all the same, pureblood or not."

Lily nearly screamed with frustration. "All right, fine. You do that. Just don't come crying to me when he sneers down at you like you're dirt on his overly-shiny shoes."

"Don't worry, I don't plan to doing that any time soon," Petunia answered coldly, putting her uneaten sandwich back.

Lily sighed. "Petunia, he's bad news. I'm saying this because I'm worried for you. Please, stay away from him."

"I'll be okay, Lils, don't worry. Really, I will," she added, reaching over to put a hand on her sister's arm. "And you be careful with that Snape boy. I don't like the way he looks at you sometimes."

Lily snorted. "Please. It's James bloody Potter you should worry about. Severus won't do anything to me. He's too nice and too sweet for that. But Potter though..."

"Yeah, well," Petunia said darkly. "Just—just be aware of that, okay? Without me around next year to take of you, who knows what might happen."

"Yes, because even the bravest of men scamper at the sight of the legendary Petunia Evans," Lily said, rolling her eyes. "All right, all right, I will. Don't be too forward with Malfoy either. He might really hurt you."

Petunia linked her pinky with Lily's. "Okay, I promise."

And Lily squeezed Petunia's little finger tightly. "I promise too."

* * *

><p>AN: Wow, you guys really liked the last chapter! I guess this is sort of a big downgrade from that one xD<p>

This is the most AU thing yet, from Tuney's House to her attraction to Lucius Malfoy and just basically everything. I'm not sure this is what SeekerForLife even wanted, but I can always do more witchy!Petunia chappies in the future.

~Gella


	134. Lily and Peter and Remus and Sirius

AN: Lily/Peter kiss and proper Wolfstar for iheartweasleytwins and RandomFandom5, respectively c:

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><p>"Truth or dare?" Sirius yelled loudly. This was greeted by a loud groan from everyone in the common room. "Great! I'll start off." He cleared his throat importantly. "Right. Remus! Truth or dare?"<p>

"I'm not—oof!" Remus went down rather painfully as Sirius flew at him and tackled him to the ground. "Black, you big oaf! I'm _not_ playing!"

"Please?" Sirius begged. "For me?"

The prefect glared up at him. "No means no—_ohh_..." he trailed off as Sirius cut him off with a kiss. Across the room, Lily gripped James's arm and averted her eyes. Marlene smiled stonily at her ex-boyfriend and his new significant other, and Peter sat there with a sad look on his face, because he's never been kissed before, by either gender.

"Changed your mind yet?" Sirius whispered as they pulled apart. Remus maintained his glare, although a small smile was slipping through.

"_One_," he ceded. "One and only one."

"And there you have it," James muttered under his breath. "Moony would've never said yes if one of _us_ asked."

"Yes, well, I'm not exactly one of _you_ in terms of...well, _everything_, am I?" Sirius replied snidely. "Okay, Remmy. Truth or dare?"

Remus swallowed. "Dare."

"Sirius must be one hell of a kisser," Lily said, eyebrows raised. "And Remus definitely is easy to blackmail."

"Oh, believe me, Lils, I am. And I prefer the term _gentle persuasion_," Sirius added. "I'd be happy to persuade you any time, darling."

James and Remus leapt to their feet at the same time, mouths forming the same words: "Don't you _dare_, Black."

Sirius grinned easily at the two of them. "I was joking, my fine sirs. Now then! A dare for Remus Johnny Lupin, what shall it be...? Oh! _Oh_! I know! I dare you to go skinny dipping in the lake with me tonight."

Remus paled considerably. "W-What did you just say?"

"You can't refuse! You agreed to the dare!" Sirius cried, jumping in front of him lest he try and escape. "Come on, Lupin! Have a sense of adventure!"

"My sense of adventure must be a bit different from yours then," Remus said icily. "It doesn't involve freezing my parts off in a lake filled with grindylows while you tried to get Marlene in the water too, thanks."

Marlene jumped up, looking furious. "Oi! I'd never—!"

Sirius sidled up to her and gave her another grin. "Wouldn't you?" And she instantly draped herself over him, giggling and batting her eyelashes. Lily, James, and Peter sighed.

"So, what do you say? Do we do it or do we do it?" Sirius asked Remus, who was apparently searching for a bottomless pit to jump into. "Great! We do it! Let's go, guys," he called as he dragged both Remus and Marlene out of the common room and down the corridor. "Don't come down too fast or you might see some things that you'd rather not see, eh?"

-x-

"Well, well, well," Lily remarked, arms crossed. "What have we got here?"

A sheepish Marlene bobbed up from the surface of the lake. In the distance, they could faintly hear Remus screeching and promising to kill Sirius for doing this to him. His screams became louder and louder until Sirius appeared again from the trees, with a crazed Remus slung across his shoulder. Lily, James, and Peter groaned and covered their eyes. They opened then again when a big splash sounded, but they all silently agreed that after tonight, it'd be nice to have another pair of eyes.

"All right," Sirius called. "Truth or dare someone else, Remus."

"I hate you," Remus moaned. "I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you—"

"And I love _you_," Sirius told him. "Pick someone though."

"You. I dare you to swim to the center of the lake and never come back."

"Okay!" Sirius agreed. "Might take a while though. Go to sleep if you want."

James charmed a tent and lit a small fire. Then, he and Lily nodded off in each other's arms while Peter snored on the cot inside. It was a long time before a shivering but triumphant Sirius returned.

"I'm back!" he crowed through numb, blue lips. "And I think I might pass out." A second later, his head went under.

"Oh, let him drown," Remus yawned as James sprang up in alarm. "The world would be a happier place if he did."

Immediately, Sirius was no longer drowning. "W-wh-what did you just say?" he gasped. "Oh good lord, never mind that, someone heat up this lake before I die or something—"

A very cross Lily marched over and heated up the water where Remus, Sirius, and Marlene were floating. "That did not feel good, James," she informed her boyfriend. "Why don't I dump you on your head onto the cold hard ground while you're still half-asleep?"

James hugged her. "Sorry, love. Marshmallows?" he added, pulling up a bunch of perfectly roasted marshmallows from nowhere. Lily giggled and forgave him with a kiss.

Sirius had recovered and was bursting with energy again. "Now, Marlene! I dare you to...I dare you to kiss Prongs!"

"No!" Lily shouted before anyone realized what was happening. A marshmallow fell from the stick as she brandished it furiously. "No no no no no no no!"

"Oh, come on, Lily," James said, pulling Marlene up from the water. "It's just a dare! It means nothing."

With that, he and Marlene shared a very passionate liplock indeed, while Lily fumed silently in the tent. Eventually, it ended, but not before Marlene stood on her tiptoes and whispered in James's ear, "You owl me when this ends."

"Oh-kay," James said, pushing her away politely. "A dare is a dare, nothing more. Now, Lily, you were saying?"

"Pick someone," Lily said through tightly-pursed lips.

"Sirius," James called. "Think of something for me." He lowered his voice. "Lily's angry."

"Gotcha," Sirius whispered back. Then, "Peter!"

"Huh?" a disorientated Peter stammered, rubbing his eyes and straightening his shirt. "What?"

Sirius gave him an evil smile. "Kiss Lily."

Peter stared. "What?"

"Kiss Lily," Sirius repeated. "Don't worry, I'll take care of your things when James kills you."

"Oh, okay." Peter trotted away to where James and Lily's argument ended into a heated snog-fest. He tugged on her sleeve. "Lily?" She pushed him away and wrapped her arms tighter around James's neck. "Lily! Lily Lily Lily Lily—"

"Why hello Professor McGonagall, ma'am!" Sirius yelled. "Fine evening, isn't it?"

James and Lily sprang apart right away, glancing around wildly. Evidently, they remembered what had happened the last time McGonagall caught them in a broom closet. Lily came to her senses first.

"Black!" she yelled. "Don't do that! What if one day she actually does come and I've decided not to rely on you anymore and then she sees us again and it'll be all your fault!"

"Peter wants to kiss you," he told her.

"What?" James shouted. "Peter, what do you mean by that?"

Poor, clueless Peter looked up at him. "I'm going to kiss Lily," he said.

"What? You can't do that! She's mine!"

"And you're _mine_. Though, that didn't stop you from groping my best friend just seconds ago, did it?" she asked him coolly. "All right, Pete, let's do this."

She stooped down until their faces were more or less level and leaned forward. Peter, jumpy with anticipation, accidentally crashed his face into hers, and Lily only just managed to keep down her yelp of pain. Then, the kiss smoothed out and both looked as if they were actually enjoying it. Sirius whooped, Marlene clapped happily, Remus facepalmed, and James slammed his head against a tree trunk. After a good minute or so, he finally couldn't take it anymore.

James stalked forward and grabbed Peter by the back of his shirt and yanked him away from Lily. "All right, that's it, no need to be too forward there, Petey boy. As for _you_," he growled at Lily, "if you thought _that_ was good, just _wait_ until tonight. I'll show you what's good!"

"Oh, please. As if you'd actually do that," Lily laughed. "Thanks, Peter," she added. "That was nice."

"Yeah," he agreed with a euphoric expression on his face. "Yeah, that was nice."

James nearly screamed. He settled for a hard kick to a tree. A moment later, he really did scream, hopping up and down on one foot and clutching the other.

"My toe!" he moaned, staggering. "It's broken!"

"Serves you right," Sirius said carelessly. "Lily, the Heating Charm's sort of gone, can you get it up again?"

"Nah. I'm going back to the castle for bed. Who's coming with me?" she called.

James was suddenly fine again. "I will," he said. "Just the two of us, how 'bout that?"

Lily raised her eyebrows at him, but allowed him to pick her up and carry her back to the castle. Marlene clambered out as well.

"I need to go make sure those two aren't doing anything naughty," she said. "You know, sometimes, I feel like I'm the only responsible one around here." She shook her head and disappeared into the woods.

Peter, who was still in a trance, stumbled after her. "I'd better get up too...big day tomorrow, you know..."

"Tomorrow's Saturday," Remus told his back. "Oh, whatever. At least it's quiet now."

"This was fun," Sirius said through a yawn. "Don't you agree?"

"Yeah," Remus said. "Although it'd be even more fun if everyone got to stay inside their clothes..."

"Oh, come _on_! You know it's better this way."

"No, it really isn't."

"Yes it is." Sirius kissed him again, and that was that.

* * *

><p>AN: Wow, it felt weird writing <em>actual<em> Wolfstar. I guess I'm just not cut out for slash...

Also, some of the first chapters in this fic are gone. That's because I deleted them. One night, I came to the conclusion of how awful they were and vowed to get through at least 10 chapters a day, whether it be deleting them or rewriting them. Thankfully, Spellshadow98 helped me see sense and I won't delete any more chapters. I just really really regret deleting the first chapter that I ever posted on this.

~Gella


	135. Teatime at Hagrid's

AN: AU chapter for the lovely Spellshadow98. I know I've been writing way too much AU lately, but this is a brilliant idea, if not a little crazy. So, here goes :D

* * *

><p>A very reluctant Lily was being dragged outside for a healthy dose of late-night rulebreaking, as James and Sirius called it.<p>

"I don't want to!" she protested for the nth time. "Go get yourselves expelled if you want, but don't pull _me_ into this!"

"Now, now, Lilykins," Sirius told her in an important tone as James spread the Cloak over the three of them. "One mustn't spend too much time indoors. When was the last time you saw sunlight?"

"And I suppose this is the perfect time for sunlight?" Lily asked. "Twelve o'clock at night?"

Sirius beamed at her. "Precisely! Hush now. Don't want to get caught, do we?"

Lily snorted exasperatedly. James patted her shoulder and continued in his awkward sideways waddle down the corridor. Sirius hummed an obnoxious little tune, and poor Lily found herself sandwiched between the two of them and vowed to kill both at the first given opportunity. Finally, they made it out the miraculously-unlocked doors and whipped off the Cloak. Lily breathed a sigh of relief.

"So, what're we going to do?" she asked.

"We're going to visit Hagrid," Sirius replied, and set off at a brisk pace towards the little hut at the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

"Wait up!" Lily called after him. "What's the hurry?"

Sirius glanced over his shoulder. "Oh, nothing. James told me that he and you were going to have a little..." he grinned sneakily here. "Quality time together. And naturally no one wants to see that. I'll meet you at Hagrid's!"

He ran off, practically cackling with glee at the expression on James's face.

"Quality time?" Lily hissed. "What _quality time_?"

James gulped, then attempted to take off after his mate. An invisible rubber band caught him around the waist and hoisted him back before he'd taken two steps.

"That actually sounds like a great idea," Lily said brightly, dangling him from her wand and bouncing him up and down. "Does this count as your _quality time_?"

"No," James muttered.

"What was that?" Lily asked in a dangerous tone and James immediately changed his tack

"Yes!" he yelped. "It's perfect! Please don't hurt me!"

"Good," she answered. And so they made their way in that fashion. Sirius was waiting for them outside the door, dying with laughter.

"Oh my Merlin, Prongs," he managed through his tears, thumping the ground with both fists. "Oh my _Merlin_."

"Shut up," James growled. "Oh, you are going to pay for this, Black."

"Yeah, whatever." Sirius knocked on the door, then called in a loud whisper, "Hagrid? It's us!"

A loud crash sounded within the hut, then an even louder yell: "Wha'? Who? Who's out there?"

"Me, James, and Lily!" Sirius yelled back. "What just happened?"

"Oh, nothin', nothin'. What're yeh all doin' out here?"

"Oh, just let us in, won't you?" Sirius said impatiently. "It's not exactly cozy out here, you know!"

The door flew open. The frazzled-looking groundskeeper glared down at them. Behind him, they could see someone hastily pulling on a cloak and rearranging her hair in the mirror.

"Wait a minute," Sirius said slowly. "Who is _that_?"

"No one!" Hagrid yelled. "Yer gonna get yerselves expelled one day, mark me words...almos' ready, Olympe?"

"'Olympe?'"Lily repeated incredulously. "Hagrid, you've got yourself a—_girlfriend_!"

"Keep yer voices down! Wha' did I ever do to deserve a lot like you?" Hagrid muttered to himself, although they could all see a rosy blush rising through the bushy beard. "All righ', come on in..."

They stepped inside, and Lily dropped James in shock. Olympe was almost as tall as Hagrid, and just as broad. She was bustling around the room, gathering her things and shoving them into a pack, as if she was about to leave.

"Who is this, Hagrid?" Sirius asked. "Introduce us, maybe?"

"Olympe," Hagrid said gruffly, taking her elbow, "these're them idiot kids from the school tha' I was tellin' you about. Lily, James, and Sirius, this is Olympe—Madam Maxime ter you," he added.

She smiled at them. "Pleased to meet you." Her voice was deep and throaty, with a thick French accent.

"Pleased to meet you too," Lily, James, and Sirius echoed.

"Excuse me, children, but I must go now," she told them, then shot Hagrid a discreet look. "'Agrid did not tell me that we were going to have guests."

"Sorry 'bout tha'," Hagrid said, shooting the three students a look in turn. "These three don' know when ter stop."

"How did you two even meet?" Sirius asked. "I didn't know we had a tribe of giants living so close."

Madam Maxime whipped around and glared at him. "What did you just say?"

"Well, that's what you are, isn't it?"

She swelled up indignantly. "Big bones! They're big bones!"

"Sirius," Lily warned.

Sirius took one look at the towering woman and immediately wilted. "Sorry, Madam Olympe," he apologized in a sickly sweet tone. "Forgive my wantonness, but do enlighten me with the no-doubt beautiful tale of you and Hagrid's meeting." Lily facepalmed.

"It is all right," Madam Maxime said, breathing heavily. "Now, 'Agrid, you can tell the story..."

Hagrid cleared his throat, a dreamy look overcoming him. "It wa' a fine night, I remember tha' well. I was on a beach south o' France, and..."

A shriek burst from Lily. Madam Maxime had gone to collect something from the wardrobe. The same wardrobe where two extravagantly-dressed—well, to the seventeen-year-olds, at least—people were currently standing in. They looked really, really lost.

No one said anything for a second; everyone stared at one another. Finally, one of the newcomers spoke.

"My greetings, all. Pray tell, what is this place?" the man asked. He was a grizzly being, with a tall stature and a beard to rival Hagrid's. A ruby-hilted sword hung at his side.

"Hagrid's hut," James said, stating the obvious. Lily kicked him. "Um, Hogwarts! We all go to school here."

The woman stepped forward. "Hogwarts?" she asked. "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?"

"Yes..."

She turned to the man next to her with a sigh. "Godric, we have been deceived. That wardrobe seems not to lead to the place they call Narnia after all."

The man, Godric, nodded. "It would appear to function the same as a Vanishing Cabinet," he said. "I trust that you are familiar with that, my dear Rowena?"

Rowena gave him a frosty look. "Do not insult my intelligence, Godric. Of course I know of the workings of a Vanishing Cabinet. I invented the very spell that operates it, did I not?"

"Of course, of course. You'll forgive my pigheadedness." This was accompanied by a good-natured eye-roll. "And who are you good people?"

Lily looked from one to the other, eyes wide. "Godric?" she said. "Is that your name?"

He bowed to her. "Godric Gryffindor at your service, fair maiden."

"And you're...Rowena?"

"Indeed I am. Have you heard of us before?"

"Godric Gryffindor..." Sirius mused. "Why does that sound familiar?"

Lily smacked him on the head. "Because he founded our House, you idiot! And she," Lily nodded towards Rowena, "is _the_ Rowena. Founder of Ravenclaw House."

James got it. His head swiveled back and forth between the two. "You're Gryffindor and Ravenclaw?" he whispered. "Two of the founders of Hogwarts?"

"That would be us. Although," frowned Rowena, "the school isn't yet open to the Wizarding public. How is it that you three attend here when Helga hasn't resolved the issue of the meals?"

"Wai' a mo'," Hagrid, who had stayed silent during this entire exchange, spoke up. "Yer Gryffindor an' Ravenclaw?"

Rowena was getting impatient. "Yes, I thought we had already established that."

"But you founded the school about nine hundred years ago," Lily said. "How are you here?"

"Nine hundred years?" Godric asked. "Blimey, does that accursed Cabinet traverse through time as well?"

Maxime waved that aside. "Never mind that, I really must be going now—"

An excited Lily cut her off. "Please stay!" she pleaded. "I'd love to learn more about you!"

The tall woman looked placated. "Oh, very well, very well..."

Lily, who hadn't been talking to her, rushed forward and shook Godric and Rowena's hands. "Sit down and tell me about what life was like when you lived," she ordered. "I mean...what was life like when—what was life like on the other side of the Cabinet?"

Godric and Rowena shot each other a bemused and a concerned look, respectively. Godric made up his mind first. "Which aspect of our daily routine would you like to learn about?" he asked Lily.

"Oh, everything!" she gushed. "I'll go make some tea, then you start talking!"

Lily nearly bounced over to the stove, while the founders looked after her curiously, whispering to each other about the strange new devices on this time. And then, as Lily reached up to get sugar from the cabinet, the second strange thing happened.

Another couple, this time dressed more casually, tumbled into Hagrid's little hut. Once again, there was a moment of silence as every pair of eyes swiveled to the two. One was a tall ginger man of about twenty, and the other had dark brown hair and a cross expression.

"Ron!" she said angrily. "Look what you've done!"

"Well, whatever I've done, Harry must've done the same thing too," he told her. "Harry, mate! Where are we?"

Now, six sets of eyeballs directed themselves at James. He looked very confused.

"Er," he stammered, "I'm not Harry. I'm James. Harry's my grandfather's name..."

The girl's eyes grew wide. "James?" she asked. Then she spotted Hagrid. "And Hagrid! My, you look younger..."

Hagrid closed his jaw, which had been hanging down to the floor. "Wh-who are you?" he asked. "I dunno you, but I'll reco'nize a Weasley when I see one. But why're yeh all here?"

Ron was pinching James's face. "You're not Harry? But you look just like Harry! Did you take Polyjuice? Oh bloody hell, you've taken him, haven't you? Tell me where he is!"

"Ouch—ow—for the love for Merlin, I'm not Harry!" James shouted. "I'm James Potter, all right? And who the blazes are you?"

Ron stopped, eyebrows furrowed. "James Potter? Are you Harry's dad?"

Lily's eyebrows jumped up. "You're a father?" she asked James incredulously.

"No! I'm not!" James yelled. "I don't know who that is and I don't know who Harry is but I am not a father! Yet!"

"_Yet_?" Lily screamed. "What do you mean _yet_?"

"Kill me," James moaned.

Ron backed up to where girl stood. "Hermione, what's going on? Who are these people?"

Hermione looked from one to the other. "Wait a second," she said. "You're James?"

"Yes," James said, glaring at Ron. "Tell your boyfriend to learn some manners, won't you?"

"Then you must be Lily! And you're—oh, Sirius, you look so different!"

"How do you know us?" Lily asked. Hermione beamed at her.

"Here, sit down and I'll tell you the whole story. And you tell _us_ about _them_," she said, gesturing to Godric and Rowena.

"And I'll make some tea," Ron added. "And, uh, I'm sorry about your face, James..."

"I hope you are," James told him, rubbing his pink cheeks.

Ron shook his head. "Blimey, Harry really didn't inherit anything but your looks, did he?"

"I better get to bed," Sirius said with a blank look on his face. "I think I'm hallucinating."

Hermione waved at him merrily. "Bye, Sirius! Please don't die," she said suddenly. "Harry went through some bad times when you did."

"For the last time, who's Harry?" Lily asked the air. Hermione set a mug of tea in front of her with a smile.

"Once you find out who he is, you will love him," she promised.

* * *

><p>AN: Happy belated birthday to:<p>

-This fic. It's been an awesome year since I first published this and I plan to give it a second birthday too :'D  
>-My husband. Most of you know probably know him as Tom Felton. He played my other husband Draco in the Harry Potter movies, you know.<br>-Billie Piper, who shares a birthday with Tom. Who else ships her character with the Doctor until the end of time?  
>AND JO'S NEW BOOK IS COMING OUT TOMORROW. SO EXCITED :D<p>

~Gella


	136. October 31, 1981

AN: Sigh. Remember when this fic updated every day? Good times, eh? Don't worry, I haven't abandoned the previous prompt, I just thought it'd be horribly cliché of me to post something like this today. So I did. Enjoy :3

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><p>She never did like to rush things.<p>

No, Lily did not. She was one to take her time, to slowly and meticulously work at it until it was way past perfect, until it was far beyond flawless. She walked to her classes, calm and controlled. She made dinner at her own leisurely pace and every dish always managed to make it onto the dinner table without a hitch. The only times when she ever really rushed anything concerned James Potter. Oh, how she rushed when she was with him.

The first time, it involved a lovely note delivered from someone hanging upside down from his broomstick. Next, it had to do with a ring. The third time, it was a little bulge in her stomach. And there were so many other rushed little things in between those, but it was rush that made them so worth it. There was a reason James and Lily proudly donned the gold-and-maroon scarves of Gryffindor House, after all.

But still, at the same time, she didn't get nearly enough time with him. Four years. Four years they were together. Four years of joy, of pain, of love that they shared. Four years, and every day of those four years she had always assumed there would be time for goodbyes. So of course there wasn't.

Four years. That isn't enough. That isn't enough at all.

She used to dream of when this moment would come. Well, nightmares, actually. But their final inevitable farewell played over and over in her head, and it was different every time. Somehow, they always found a few seconds in whatever situation at hand for one last kiss, one last loving glance and linking of hands. So of course that wasn't what happened at all.

"_Lily, take Harry and run! I'll hold him off!"_

The closest she got was the desperate gaze that connected their eyes, minds, and hearts. And then she had given him a terrified nod, cradled their son tightly to her chest, and stumbled up the stairs. She hadn't made it very far when something inside of her snapped. And that was when she knew that he was gone. Gone, killed, dead without the feel of her lips on his for the last time. Tears sprang to her eyes. Numbly, she wondered if she'd said "I love you" to him that day. Of course she did. They always did. But suddenly, that seemed very important to Lily.

"James," she whispered. "James, oh James."

Baby Harry cooed contentedly in her arms. Lily clutched him closer, her salty tears dripping onto his thick black hair. Her James had gone, but Harry was still here. She would protect him with her life, the way she couldn't protect James. She hurried into the bedroom and slammed the door behind her.

"I'll never let him get to you," Lily said fiercely against Harry's warm cheek, raising the bars of the crib. She fell to her knees besides him, letting his tiny hands wrap around her little finger one last time. "Harry, Mama loves you. Daddy loves you. Be strong, Harry. We'll always be with you."

"_Take Harry and run! Run somewhere safe! Run and survive! __**You need to live, goddammit!**__"_

More tears fell as Lily's lips curled into a sad, trembling smile. It isn't living without you, James. I'm coming to you now. We'll be together.

"_No, Lily, no! No! Don't you dare!"_

He'll never touch our son, I promise you. Harry will survive and he will live on. He is going to be fine.

"_Don't do this, please. Please, Lily, I'm begging you..."_

Lily closed her eyes. Her hands fell away from Harry's.

"_Stop! Lily, please! Damn it all, this wasn't the way it was supposed to end!"_

The door fell open with a bright flash of green. Death swept in, and from its ghastly shadow protruded pale, spidery fingers that wielded a wand. It spoke without moving its mouth. "Give me the boy."

Her voice was strong when she spoke. "Kill me instead."

A high, cruel laugh. "Foolish girl. And yet, if that is your wish, then you shall have it."

Behind her, Harry was crying, realizing that this was so very real, that his daddy had gone and mummy will not be coming back. Lily waited for it, eyes open and unseeing._ I love you, James._

It hit her faster than she expected. The last thing she heard was Harry's lung-heaving wailing. Then she felt it:

"_**I love you too, Lily.**__"_

She wanted to smile, but a tear leaked out instead. And then all life left her body and Lily Potter was no more.

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><p>AN: Well, that's that. Happy Halloween, guys.<p>

~Gella


	137. Catastrophe in Potions

AN: GUYS, HELP ME. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO WRITE ANYMOAR.  
>Also: yes, the second part of the time travel chapter is still a work-in-progress, and I really should stop joining new fandoms when there's work to do, but I have no self-control, so it'll be another century before I finally bring myself to finish it. Hopefully you like this chapter though, and hopefully the prompt will be done before I turn 50. Hopefully.<p>

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><p>It was a perfect autumn day, and a horrible time to be stuck in the dungeons. The room was hot and stuffy from the fumes rising from the rows of cauldrons, and gentle sunlight filtered in through the narrow windows. The hisses and pops and sizzles of potions melted into the chatter in the classroom, a curiously soothing medley of noise. It was one of those days that James Potter just couldn't make himself take the effort to pay any attention to his potion, or to Professor Slughorn, or to anything at all. Anything except one.<p>

She was beautiful as she worked, small hands precisely bringing her knife down on the ingredients, mouth chatting animatedly to her friends, lips and eyes smiling together. James carelessly tossed a pile of something into his cauldron, eyes never leaving her face. As a result, his cauldron omitted a small explosion and a rotten cloud of gas. He barely managed to keep down his yelp of pain as scalding hot water burst all over his arms. For a moment, she looked over and saw him jumping up and down and blowing on his reddening hands, and smiled. James quickly smiled back, but she missed it as she turned back to whisper something to her friend. They giggled together, and Lily did not look back at him again. Slightly disgruntled, James made his way to the sink and ran his hands under the water. Then, he felt a weight on his shoulder.

"It's never going to happen," Sirius said carelessly as he studied his fingernails.

"What?" James kept his voice light, unconcerned. "Oi, get off, you prat. Your elbow is pricking me."

His mate didn't remove his arm. "You and her? Won't ever happen, so quit your daydreaming and focus more on the present."

James turned off the faucet and took the opportunity to wipe his wet hands on Sirius's back. "Buzz off, you. What's the present if you don't look to the future?"

"The present is your bloody potion, dunghead. I'd wager it isn't the mother-of-pearl sheen that it's supposed to be."

James cursed. He hadn't been listening to the instructions and had literally thrown handfuls of his ingredients blindly into the cauldron. He eyed the concoction carefully now and decided that it was beyond hopeless. "I'll dump this later," he muttered. "I guess it's a zero for today, then."

"This is what she's done to you," Sirius told him. "It's madness. You'll never make it to seventh year if you keep this up."

"Never you mind. Aren't you supposed to be working too?"

"I'm done. And won a little morsel of lucky goodness along the way too." The wink of gold vanished back into Sirius's pocket as fast as it had come. James gaped at it, boggled.

"Liquid luck? Merlin be damned, how the hell did I miss that?"

"Madness," Sirius repeated. "It's a shame, though. If you'd been paying attention, you might've gotten a little drop of luck to nudge you along the road with Evans."

"I wouldn't have brewed it right anyway," James sighed. "Is class almost over? If I have to stay here a minute longer I'll burst."

"Burst away," the other boy said. "Might make her notice you, at least."

"Buzz off," James said again. Sirius held up his hands in surrender and left for another table, where two Hufflepuff girls sat tittering as he approached them. James turned away from them, his previous mood soured. But everything began looking up as Lily Evans started in his direction, a vial of shimmery potion in her hand. Maybe if he could stop her on her way up for a word or two...

"Evans," he called. She turned to him, and it must have been a pleasant day for her as well, because a small smile grew on her lips as she changed direction and walked towards his table. Their classmates immediately grew quiet. They were too accustomed to hexes flying and things being thrown after James's mouth formed Lily's surname.

"Oh, stop looking at us, you lot, I'm not about to ask her for her hand in marriage," he snapped. "Go on, look away." And they did, although some stole curious glances every few seconds. James glared at them until they hunched their shoulders and turned their backs. Lily took a seat next to him.

"Hello, Potter," she said.

"Hi," he replied. And suddenly, his mind was blank. He had absolutely no idea what to do next. Every clever quip that he had accumulated in his brain over the years vanished on the spot. He swallowed.

"How are you today?" he asked, then mentally slit his own throat.

"I'm pretty good," Lily said. "How about you?"

"I feel like perfection." The words were out before he could stop them. James blast himself to the deepest pit of hell for having the stupid notion to ever open his mouth. "I mean—I'm good—and good is somewhat like perfection, and—" Now the words chose to stop, leaving him open-mouthed as Lily Evans sat in front of him, looking politely confused. He could feel Sirius's silent sniggers behind him. The rest of the class had attempted to carry on as normal, but now every pair of eyes was trained on him, probably because no one remembered a time that James Potter was as awkward and speechless as he was now.

"Um...if you don't mind, James, I'm going to take my potion to Professor Slughorn now," Lily said finally.

"Yeah, all right—you do that—"

Her chair scraped back and James slammed his head down on the table. He would have been happy to stay that way forever, had a loud crash not made him jump up.

His cauldron was smashed on the ground. Lily was sprawled next to it, completely drenched in James's failed potion. Her own potion ran down the cracks of the dungeon floor, the glass vial broken into a million iridescent pieces. James leapt to his feet, swearing extravagantly. Unfortunately, for all his athletic abilities, he could not evade the slimy puddle at his feet and crashed into Lily. That sent them both falling facefirst into the quickly-spreading potion.

"Merlin, I am so sorry," James gasped, swiping sludge off his glasses. "How could I have—"

He stopped mid-sentence as he stared stupidly at her. His gaze made her look down too, then squeak in horror. Whatever things James had thrown into the cauldron apparently had incredibly acidic properties and was eating away their clothing rapidly. James panicked, trying to remember which pair of boxers he had on, then remembered that it was a plain black one and breathed a sigh of relief. He looked down, about to apologize some more, when Lily shoved him away with a harsh whisper:

"Stop_ looking_!"

Words of protest died in his throat as she pushed him off, snatched up her cloak, and fled the classroom. Belatedly, he realized what it must have seemed like and nearly screamed. His shirt and tie were gone; his trousers were disappearing at an alarming rate. People were whispering to their neighbors, and Slughorn was at last waddling over and siphoning away the potion with his wand, and James hurriedly scrambled up from the ground in nothing but his barely-retained underwear. _Stupid, stupid, stupid_, he cursed himself. _How could you be so _stupid!

Then Sirius was at his side, shoving a blanket at him. "Get your skinny arse out of here, my bloody underwear model," he hissed. "Just couldn't control your wandering eyes, could you?"

"I wasn't!" James objected, but Sirius shoved him outside and slammed the door. Then he pulled it back open just a crack.

"If you know what's good for you," he said, "you'll get back to the tower and apologize like your life depends on it, because it sort of does. No, I don't care if she won't listen, you get your slimy behind over there now! Hurry! _Go_!"

The door slammed again.

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><p>He couldn't find her anywhere until late that night. The news had spread like wildfire and soon enough, everyone in the school was privy to what had happened in the dungeons. The whispers and glances followed his every step for the rest of the day, and after dinner he went straight to the library and buried himself in homework. Finally, around eleven, Madam Pince chased him out with a feather duster, and James found himself wandering the hallways, not even caring if a teacher or Mrs. Norris caught him. He did not want to go back to the common room. He did not want to see any of his classmates ever again.<p>

After an hour of making rounds throughout the entire school, James stumbled up to the Astronomy Tower with half a mind to throw himself off its highest turret, but someone was already there. James heard the quiet sniffles before he saw the long scarlet hair.

"Evans?" he said hesitantly. The girl whipped around, hair flying and eyes wild.

"Don't come near me, Potter," she said fiercely.

"Lily, look—I'm horribly, horribly sorry about what happened—"

"You _saw_," she said. A sob burst out of her throat. "And that isn't even the worst of it! Do you _know_ what they're saying?"

James knew what they were saying. "Yes, I do, and I'm sorry! And I never meant to fall on top of you, and it isn't as if I spilled the potion on you on purpose! I didn't even know it would do what it did!"

"Then why didn't you look away?" she cried.

"Lily, come on," he said desperately. "I was only staring because I was surprised, that's all. I'm not the sick bastard you think I am."

"Yes you are," she muttered, but some of the ferocity left her voice. Lily slumped against the ledge, looking worn.

"Can I sit?" James asked. She nodded stiffly.

"I still hate you for what happened," Lily said as he slumped down next to her.

"Oh, believe me, I know."

She glared into the darkness, mouth turned downwards in a scowl and arms crossed tightly. James looked at her sadly, wondering just how much he'd messed things up.

"You want to sit on the ledge?" he asked after a few uncomfortable minutes. "The view's better up there."

"Wouldn't it be dangerous?" Lily said. "What if I fall?"

"I'll catch you," he told her. That earned him a fresh glare.

"What if _you_ fall?" She sounded rather at peace with the idea.

"Well, you wouldn't care, would you?"

In response, Lily hoisted herself up, balanced precariously on her toes for a moment, then sat, legs swinging beneath her. James jumped up too, and the narrowness made them sit a little closer. Their arms brushed, and he braced himself for whatever things she wanted to scream at him next, but Lily didn't seem to have noticed.

"It's really dark tonight, isn't it?" she said, looking up at the moonless sky.

"Yeah," he replied, thinking of Remus. "But the stars make it a bit better. See that one there? That's Sirius."

"I'm sure he'll be delighted to be described as a star."

"I'm sure he is."

The conversation stopped there for a few minutes. James was wondering how to start it back up when Lily asked,

"Do you know any other stars?"

She sounded almost shy. James realized that this was the first time in six years she's ever asked him for anything. He cleared this throat and quickly looked up again.

"Well, that one next to Sirius is Andromeda, and that really bright one is either Bellatrix or Pollux. And they're all in the constellation Orion."

"I'm guessing the reason you know all that is because half your best mate's family's in there."

"Sort of," James admitted. "I read about all of them in first year when he brought it up."

She seemed to have calmed down as she tilted her head at him. "I didn't know you could read."

James just smiled, content as long as she wasn't in tears because of him. "Why'd you want to know? I'd think someone like you'd already know them all."

"I do. I just wanted to see you talk about something other than being perfection."

James remembered his suave behavior in the dungeons and didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He settled for a dramatic sigh. "I knew it wasn't just to hear my beautiful voice."

And then the scowl was back. "You're a prick."

"You're beautiful."

"You are a prick," she repeated.

"Is this just to hear me call you beautiful again?"

She shoved him. His yelp echoed off the surrounding towers, at first laughter but then changed to a heart-in-his-throat vertigo. For a moment, James thought he was about to topple off the ledge, but a hand seized the back of his shirt and dragged him back. He glanced over his shoulder to see Lily breathing heavily, staring at him.

"You almost fell!" she said, wide-eyed.

"You pushed me," he countered.

"But I didn't mean for you to fall!"

"It's all right," James said. "I wouldn't fall that easily."

"Yeah, but still!"

"Is this concern I hear in your lovely tone?"

"Yes, for myself. Black would never give me peace if he thinks I pushed you to your death."

He chuckled. "Yeah, well, earlier he wasn't about to ever give me peace again if I didn't find you."

"Find me? Find me and then what, erase the memories of everyone in our class?"

James shrugged. "Probably."

Her eyes flitted to his for an instant, then away again, down to the trees by the lake. A midnight breeze wrapped a chilly blanket around the two of them, and a small shiver ran through Lily's body. She rubbed her arms through her thin school sweater and drew up her legs.

"Maybe we should go back inside," James suggested.

"No," she said stubbornly. "I'm never going back inside."

"You and me both," he sighed. "But you'll catch a cold if you stay out here. I'd offer you my shirt, but I doubt you want to see more of me today, so..."

"Oh, stop," she said. "I'm not as frail as you think, Potter."

"Yeah, you're not frail at all," he agreed. "Although the offer still stands."

"Thank you, but no thank—"

A sneeze interrupted her, and then two more. Finally, after the last one, she held still, mouth slightly open, waiting for another sneeze that didn't come. Lily wiped her nose with her sleeve and caught James raising his eyebrows at her.

"Shut up," she said. "It's just a few sneezes, that's all."

"If you say so."

"I do say so." And then she sneezed again.

"Also, my shoulder's a pretty good place to lean on, if you're ever cold..."

"If you dare touch me, I will shove you off this ledge right now."

"Would you?" James asked, but he didn't want to push his luck. All the same, he surreptitiously slid closer to Lily, who stopped sneezing.

"I should've brought a cloak," she said thickly. "You don't happen to have a handkerchief, do you?"

"Sorry, no."

"Can I use your shirt then?"

James considered this for a second, then shrugged and tore off a strip of cloth from his sleeve and passed it to her. She stared at it.

"You know I was joking, right?" Lily asked finally.

"Too late now," he said. "Don't worry, I'm sure it's all my clothing's wildest dream, for you to touch them."

Lily blew her nose, then tossed the soggy ball down onto her bag. "I'm not entirely sure if there's a hidden meaning behind that, but all right."

"Well, you said it, not me."

She jabbed him lightly in the ribs, but for all her bravado, James could feel Lily trembling slightly every time she took a breath.

"Lily, you should just know that you're literally shaking," he said. "Soon I'll be obliged to give you my shirt whether you like it or not."

"You're not taking off your shirt, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear." She was unconsciously leaning deeper and deeper into him, and James was careful to not put any pressure against her. After a while, she stopped shivering. James thought it was only fair of him to let her know why.

"Lily," he said. "Take a moment and feel how you're sitting right now."

She didn't jerk away, to his surprise. "Tell anyone and you're dead, Potter."

A grin spread slowly across his face as understanding dawned. "So you're saying you've known, and you're actually enjoying it?"

"If anyone says anything suspicious to me tomorrow, I'll personally come to murder you in your sleep."

"Ah, Lily," he said. "I do love you."

"And you're warm" was all she said. She wasn't looking at him, and maybe it was good that she didn't, because the idiotic grin James wore would have scared her away for sure. He sat there, wishing he could do something with his arms, wishing he could hold her hand, wishing she would rest her head on his shoulder—and then she did. He could've jumped up in joy, but thankfully kept himself calm.

"My, Evans, aren't we audacious tonight? What makes you so sure that I won't tell Sirius everything tomorrow morning?"

"That's a cute thought," she snorted. "You and him whispering and giggling together like a bunch of first year girls."

James stopped grinning, because she had painted a disturbing image in his head. "All right, fine, I won't."

Lily's head rolled slightly on his shoulder. "I know that."

"Speaking of giggling," James said, "were you laughing at me because I burned my hands today in class?"

"You saw us?"

"It's rude to make fun of the injured, Lily."

"You're injured all right. Up here." She tapped her forehead.

"You're nice to everyone but me," he accused. "You can even tolerate Sirius!"

"Just barely," she said. "Besides, I find him charming in a stupid sort of way."

"Oh, so I'm not charming in a stupid sort of way?"

"Well, I'll give you stupid, if that makes you happy."

"Why do I try," he muttered.

"Because sometimes it can bring you something you really want."

James looked at her, and she was looking at him, and suddenly he remembered how much he loved her eyes but forgot everything else and somehow the space between them was closing up and she was _so_ close—

"Don't even think about it," she whispered. James jerked back, blinking rapidly. "Potter, you're really an idiot sometimes."

"Yeah, I am," he sighed.

"We should get back before you get too sleepy and do some things that you might regret." She pushed away from him and hopped off the ledge. "Come on. Hopefully everyone will be in bed by now."

James jumped down and grabbed his bag and followed Lily off the tower. She was waiting for him at the foot of the stairs, and together they walked up to the common room.

"I'm glad to know that you hold my presents to you so closely to your heart," he said after they got past the grumpy Fat Lady.

Lily looked at him, startled. "What?"

"Those knickers I gave you for Christmas last year with my initials all over it? Either your clean laundry is running out, or, you know..." He laughed as a look of complete panic appeared in her eyes.

"Next time we're alone on a tall tower together, remind me to push you off onto a patch of rocks then pass it off as an accident," she hissed. James waved as she stormed up the girls' staircase. At the top, she paused and gave him one last look.

"My mum told me that good manners were to be expected at any time, so good night, Potter."

He smiled. "Good night, Evans."

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><p>AN: Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! :D<p>

~Gella


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